The Los Angeles Dodgers, who have won consecutive World Series championships, padded their stats on Friday with a 2-0 victory over the in-state rival San Francisco Giants.
On Saturday, they’ll play the middle game of the series, but they’ve made several notable changes to their lineup with the MLB postseason only days away.
The Los Angeles Dodgers Announce Freddie Freeman, Max Muncy Decision
The Dodgers have released their lineup for today’s middle game against the Giants, and there were several notable changes.
Miguel Rojas replaces Max Muncy at third base, while Tommy Edman takes over at second base in place of Enrique Hernández. Hernández moves to first base with Freddie Freeman out of the lineup.
The changes also shuffle the batting order. Teoscar Hernández moves up to third, while Andy Pages moves up to sixth.
So far this season, Freeman is hitting .290 with 16 home runs and 70 RBI along with a .796 OPS, while Muncy is hitting .249 with 29 home runs and 76 RBI.
The full Dodgers lineup, which includes starting pitcher Blake Snell, for Saturday is as follows:
- M. Betts — SS
- S. Ohtani — DH
- W. Smith — C
- T. Hernández — LF
- K. Tucker — RF
- M. Rojas — 3B
- A. Pages — CF
- E. Hernández — 1B
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Dodgers Manager Dave Roberts Expects Shohei Ohtani
Shohei Ohtani, who has now played three straight games upon his return to the lineup, will hopefully be at full strength by the time the Dodgers begin defending their consecutive championships on Saturday against a yet-to-be-determined opponent.
“We need him to be full strength and also do what he does, take good at-bats, take what they give you, if they’re going to pitch around you to pitch to Mookie [Betts], so be it,” Roberts said via ESPN. “And if they make mistakes, then hit it hard. We need him to be healthy and strong. It certainly helps our offense.”
So far, he’s looking the way that his manager had been anticipating.
“I think that’ll be great,” said Roberts. “He looked the way I would have hoped. I was hoping he would look like this. I said it yesterday, it’s been very encouraging to see his at-bats and the swings.”
Dodgers Announce Freddie Freeman Decision Before Middle Game Vs. Giants