Dodger Thoughts

Jon Weisman's outlet for dealing psychologically with the Los Angeles Dodgers, baseball and life

Tag: A.J. Pollock

Lux could be odd man out for Dodgers when Seager returns

A.J. Pollock is hitting better against right-handed pitching this season (.819 OPS) than Gavin Lux (.769 OPS).

And Pollock is destroying left-handed pitching (.911 OPS), while Lux is downright Joc Pederson-esque (.414 OPS).

Pollock is a streaky hitter — Lux might be as well — and as we’ve learned the hard way, a lot can change while waiting for a player to come off the injured list. But right now, it looks very much like that Lux is going to be the one who will be essentially displaced from the starting lineup when Corey Seager makes his way back to the Dodgers, sometime this month if all goes to plan. 

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Dodgers poised to reboot
Sweet Life of Zach and Cody

Though Corey Seager is still sidelined for weeks thanks to the hand that rocked the baseball, within a week the Dodgers are expecting to get a major reinforcement with the return of Cody Bellinger, not to mention a key boost from Zack McKinstry. 

For a team that has struggled to get production from the back end of its roster, these infusions will have a major impact. Bellinger has played in only four of the team’s 45 games this season, and even while establishing himself as an early season sensation (142 OPS+), McKinstry has only appeared in 17. 

Always a streaky hitter, Bellinger might require time to get back into the groove, while the promising McKinstry still needs to prove how productive he can be over the long term. Nevertheless, here’s a quick look at how this revival of the Suite Life of Zach and Cody will transform the Dodger squad we’ve been watching the past month.

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Previewing the 2021 Dodgers: Position players

Jon SooHoo/Los Angeles Dodgers

Hey there! Since I haven’t actually written much on the defending World Series champions this year, I thought I’d throw down some of the stuff that’s been percolating inside my head about the 2021 Dodgers ahead of Thursday’s Opening Day. Let’s start with the position players. (Note: Some of these thoughts materialized during the chats we’ve had on Clubhouse.) 

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Corey Seager, a slider and the Dodgers’ October bubble

Carrie Giordano/Los Angeles Dodgers

It was drowned out by the Howie Kendrick grand slam, by Juan Soto teeing off on the fattest pitch of Clayton Kershaw’s career, by Anthony Rendon taking a golf swing at a Kershaw pitch near his shins.

It was smothered by a National League Division Series Game 5 that tore the Dodgers and their fans apart.

But before NLDS Game 5, there was Game 2. And in Game 2, there was one inning, arguably one pitch, that speaks as much to the Dodgers’ Job-like journey through the Octobers of the past seven seasons as any other.

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