The Dodgers are heading to Atlanta with a problem they can’t ignore anymore: the bats have gone quiet at exactly the wrong time.
After the Braves walked out of Dodger Stadium with Game 2, the National League Division Series has shifted sharply in Atlanta’s favor. Los Angeles now has to win at least once at Truist Park to keep its season alive. Miss on both chances, and that’s it.
“We've got our work cut out,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said after Sunday's game. “Now it's a three-game series.”
Through two games, the Dodgers’ offense has been built almost entirely on the long ball. That worked just enough to keep them around in a pair of bullpen games, but the cracks showed in Game 2. Los Angeles finished 0-for-8 with runners in scoring position and stranded seven.
Mookie Betts, who has led off both games, summed up the frustration without dressing it up.
“Sometimes it’s just you can’t hit,” said shortstop Mookie Betts, who's led off each of the first two games and is 1-for-5 with three walks. “I mean, there’s nothing really you can do to explain that.
You’ve just got to be in the moment and come through. We had some moments today [when] we didn't come through.
“That’s part of the game. We’ve just got to keep giving ourselves moments, and eventually something will happen.”
The slump has spread well beyond one spot in the order. Andy Pages is 0-for-7 after last October’s rough ride.
Will Smith, hitting third, is 0-for-8. Tommy Edman went 0-for-5 before being lifted for Josue De Paula in the bottom of the ninth on Sunday.
Shohei Ohtani has not looked like the force the Dodgers usually lean on. Battling knee, biceps and neck injuries, he is 2-for-8 with two singles and struck out twice in Game 2.
“There's a lot of chase,” Roberts said of Ohtani. “It's hard to square up, put good swings on balls that are out of the zone. That's kind of what it boils down to.”
Roberts also said Ohtani’s physical condition doesn’t appear to be the issue.
“I haven't heard anything other than he feels fine,” Roberts said. “So I don't know if he's trying to do too much because he doesn't feel perfect.
This time of year ... no one feels perfect. He's doing the best he can.”
This isn’t a brand-new October problem for Los Angeles, either. The Dodgers were knocked out in the 2022 and 2023 NLDS because the offense dried up.
Last year, it was the pitching staff that bailed them out late against the San Diego Padres. This time, they need the lineup to dig them out.
“We’ve got to find a way to score some runs without hitting a home run,” first baseman Freddie Freeman said. “That’s our biggest thing right now. So keep getting guys on base and get that big hit.”
Now the challenge gets tougher. Chris Sale, fully rested, is lined up for Tuesday. Tyler Mahle follows Wednesday in what would be an elimination game for one team.
Los Angeles may also have to rethink the lineup. The Dodgers were preparing for bullpen games in the first two contests, but now they’re looking at a much different task against Sale for most of Game 3.
Betts and Freeman are the only Dodgers who have done much of anything against him. Ohtani, who is still compromised, is just 3-for-15 against the former Cy Young Award winner.
Roberts said Ohtani will be in the lineup for Game 3. The Dodgers appear ready to stick with their best player, even in a matchup that looks rough on paper. Moving him out of the No. 2 spot would be a major call, but one that might be worth considering if Los Angeles wants to jolt its offense.
“Certainly Sale is going to be tough because there's a lot of strike to ball, it's high velocity,” Roberts said of the matchup for Ohtani.
Then he added: “He'll be in there Game 3, and we've just got to, again, take good at-bats and expect the best.”
In Other News...
Dodgers Let NLDS Control Slip Away After Another Offensive Letdown
Blake Snells afternoon never found a rhythm, and the Dodgers could not do enough offensively to take advantage of the opening it created. Los Angeles dropped a 3-2 decision to the Braves in Game 2 of the National League Division Series, a result that evened the series at one game apiece and left the Dodgers searching for the timely hit that has been missing too often in October.
Snell issued a season-high five walks, and the game turned on a chaotic stretch that included a wild pitch from Braves reliever Kris Bubic before Atlanta grabbed the go-ahead run. Freddie Freeman also came through for the Braves with a home run, his first since Sept. 2, adding another swing that helped flip the momentum and leave the Dodgers with a split instead of control. [Read more 🡒]
Dodgers Face A Lineup Decision That Could Test Braves In Game 3
After getting bottled up by the Braves in Game 2 of the National League Division Series, the Dodgers are staring at a familiar October problem: how to jolt an offense that went quiet when it needed to answer back. Atlanta leaned on multiple pitchers to keep Los Angeles in check, and now Dave Roberts is weighing a lineup tweak for Game 3 as the series shifts into a more urgent phase for a team trying to avoid elimination.
The concern centers on center fielder Andy Pages, whose postseason struggles have become hard to ignore, and that has opened the door for Enrique Hernandez to potentially step in and give the lineup a different look. Hernandez has earned a reputation as a reliable October bat, which is part of what makes this decision so interesting for the Dodgers, who need more than just better at-bats now - they need a spark that can change the feel of the series. [Read more 🡒]
Dodgers Suddenly Face A Real Andy Pages Lineup Dilemma
Andy Pages arrived at October with the kind of profile the Dodgers hoped would translate, but through two postseason games he has not found much traction. He has gone hitless in eight plate appearances, drawing one walk and striking out four times, and the swing-and-miss issues have stood out even more because they are so far above his regular-season norms. For a Dodgers lineup built to keep pressure on opposing pitching, that kind of drop-off from a regular contributor quickly becomes hard to ignore.
Dave Roberts has already made one adjustment by limiting Pages ability to challenge calls, a small but telling sign that the club is trying to manage both the player and the moment. If the struggles continue, the Dodgers do not appear short on alternatives, which only adds to the tension around Pages spot. In October, even a young hitter with legitimate upside can find himself one rough stretch away from a lineup debate. [Read more 🡒]