David Ortiz shared the only thing he thinks can salvage the Dodgers’ World Series chances
The clock is ticking.
Above fervent “Pa-pi! Pa-pi!” chants surrounding the FOX studio outside Fenway Park, former Red Sox slugger David Ortiz pumped up the already boisterous crowd.
“Two more!” he shouted.
Moments earlier, Boston had clinched a 4-2 victory over the Los Angeles Dodgers in Game 2 of the World Series. With the win, the Red Sox maintained home-field advantage to head to L.A. with a 2-0 series lead. The pair of Ws bodes well for the Sox, as 80 percent of teams that claim Games 1 and 2 go on to also win the title.
So, what can the Dodgers do to get back in this series?
“The only thing that I feel that would save the Dodgers’ playoff run, all the way to the end, is to stop playing that in-and-out game they have with the lineup,” Ortiz said during FOX’s postgame show. “They haven’t been able to produce, and then, when they have the opportunity or one of those guys have had the opportunity to produce, they have to be coming off the bench — all cold.”
Against Boston’s lefty starters Chris Sale and David Price, Dodgers manager Dave Roberts opted to sit his left-handed hitters, including NLCS MVP Cody Bellinger, until the Red Sox made a pitching change and brought in a right-handed reliever. During Game 1, for example, Bellinger — who had played nine complete games during the NLDS and NLCS — got his first at-bat in the fifth inning. Roberts had acknowledged facing Sale is a challenge no matter one’s dexterity, but he noted batting against the ace as a left-handed hitter makes the task “that much tougher.”
Roberts attempted to adjust the lineup to reflect, what he believes to be, more favorable matchups. In both Games 1 and 2, Bellinger and fellow lefties, Max Muncy and Joc Pederson, were benched in favor of Kike Hernandez, Brian Dozier, and David Freese. After combining for 85 home runs and 211 RBI during the regular season, Bellinger, Muncy, and Pederson entered the team’s first two games only as pinch-hitters or defensive substitutions once the starter has been yanked.
“That’s a situation that I don’t agree with,” Ortiz said.
Roberts is correct in that a lefty’s batting average, on-base percentage, and slugging percentage are all lower than those of a righty when opposing both Sale and Price. Nonetheless, the right-handed substitutes for Bellinger, Muncy, and Pederson haven’t posted convincing numbers against the Red Sox so far. They’re 3-for-15 with five strikeouts. Bellinger, Muncy, and Pederson themselves have also struggled, registering one hit in nine at-bats against the Red Sox.
Ortiz — as well as his FOX colleague Alex Rodriguez — speculated the lack of productivity could be related to the aggressive lineup decisions.
“They neutered their MVP,” Rodriguez said. “You can see it in [Bellinger’s] face. You see his body language. He’s got family, he’s got friends, texting him saying, ‘Didn’t you just win the MVP, bro? You should be playing.’ It’s interesting.”
But Roberts defended his decision after Game 2 Wednesday.
“Yeah, it’s hard to have guys that slug — Pederson, Muncy, Bellinger — on the bench, but this is something that we’ve done a lot in September and throughout the postseason, and it’s proved to be successful,” Roberts said. “Those guys are still getting in games and staying current. But when guys are in there, they’ve just got to be productive. We’ve got a lot of good players, [and] we’ve got a long way to go.”
Righthander Rick Porcello is Boston’s probable starter for Game 3 Friday, which means Roberts could freely tweak the lineup so that three of his most productive hitters will, in fact, start.
