Is it too early for magic numbers? They held a particular fascination for me as a kid, and with the way I’m watching Padres games lately to make sure San Diego loses, I’ve been thinking about what combination of wins and losses the Dodgers need to swipe the first-place berth. It’ll likely be a roller coast of back-and-forth movement in the standings until the end of the regular season, and sometimes a nice, concrete number is a helpful thing to hang onto during the ride.
Thankfully, there’s plenty
of other news to distract us along the way. Here’s what’s happening as the Dodgers get ready for another game against Cincinnati today.
Dodgers Notes
Kiké Hernández is back and—hopefully—better than ever, especially when it comes to offense, writes Sonja Chen at MLB.com. With Dodgers left fielders struggling at the plate lately, Hernández could be a viable option to bring some much-needed pep back into the lineup.
The best is yet to come where the Dodgers’ offense is concerned, manager Dave Roberts has declared. He’s taken the time to speak with hitters individually about taking better at bats, encouraging small changes to plate appearances rather than drastic overhauls, writes Bill Plunkett of the Orange County Register.
Shohei Ohtani has always been a nice guy. He greets the home plate ump on his first at bat of every game, and he never has a bad thing to say about anyone in interviews. But there’s a little bit of sass deep inside, and Ohtani was all too happy to show it off by making sure to high-five a critical Padres fan after a home run, writes Greg Beacham at the Associated Press.
The Baseball Writers Association of America has given the green light for a Relief Pitcher of the Year award, and Dodgers pitchers should be pleased, says Steve Henson at the Los Angeles Times. There aren’t many awards given to relievers, and the last one to win a Cy Young was the Dodgers’ own Eric Gagne.
