LOS ANGELES — The Dodgers’ second try at closing out the National League Division Series comes after their worst offensive game in over two weeks, scoring only twice in Wednesday night’s Game 3 loss to the Phillies. The Dodgers’ offensive struggles start at the top of the lineup.
Shohei Ohtani has one single — driving in what would be the winning run in Game 2 — in 14 at-bats against the Phillies, with seven strikeouts. He nearly hit a home run in the seventh inning of Game 3, when the game was still close, but his drive died at the base of the left field wall.
“At the plate, his decision making hasn’t been good. You can see, in balls in, off, he’s really not giving himself a chance to hit a mistake,” manager Dave Roberts said Wednesday night. “He’s in between a little bit, but his swing decisions are just not where they need to be right now.”
The bulk of the damage has been against Phillies left-handers, with 11 of his 14 NLDS at-bats coming against southpaws. That includes three strikeouts in three at-bats in Game 1 against Cristopher Sánchez, who will start Game 4 on Thursday night on four days rest.
Phillies manager Rob Thomson after Game 3 wanted no part of talking about how much Ohtani is slumping at the plate.
“He can explode at any time, He’s that great of a hitter,” Thomson said. “But we have pitched him well.”
Ohtani is not alone in his struggles. At the top of the lineup, Ohtani, Mookie Betts, and Freddie Freeman have a combined six hits in 27 at-bats during the series, with a double, triple, and two walks, hitting .222/.300/.333 with two runs scored and one driven in.
The trio had 11 hits in 25 at-bats with four doubles, two home runs, and three walks in the two-game wild card round, hitting .440/.500/.840 against the Reds.
Alex Call gets the start in left field in Game 4 on Thursday, his first start of the postseason. He’s essentially starting instead of Max Muncy against the lefty Sánchez, with Kiké Hernández at third base.
Call appeared in two games this postseason — Games 1 of the wild card round and NLDS — and has two hits in two at-bats, including a single in Game 1 off Sánchez.