Los Angeles Dodgers Beat the Streak selections — April 15
By Jason Reed
The Los Angeles Dodgers head into Jackie Robinson day looking to avoid getting swept, and losing 12 straight, to the Arizona Diamondbacks.
The panic is starting to settle in around the Los Angeles Dodgers. Los Angeles is currently five games under .500 and has not looked good in the process. The usually elite pitching staff has looked all too human and the offensive approaches have not been stellar.
The loss of Justin Turner has been circled as the biggest reason of fault. And while that is partially true, the defending National League Champions should be able to compete still without him. Realistically, it is likely the result of having Turner’s bat out of the lineup as well as a World Series hangover.
The bad luck continued for LA as the team could lose Logan Forsythe to the 10-day DL. Forsythe was pulled from Saturday’s contest with shoulder discomfort that he has already been battling through. Forsythe is the Dodgers’ replacement at third for Justin Turner. Now, the Dodgers have an issue on their hands.
However, here at LA Sports Hub, our priority for tomorrow is making sure our Beat the Streak selections are correct. One of us is a perfect 4-4 while another is looking to rebound from back-to-back 0-for’s
Saturday’s picks:
Heading into Saturday, I selected Yasiel Puig for the second time in four games. Puig did not fail to deliver, lining a double into left field in the second inning that ended up being the Dodgers only run. Puig added another hit, going 2-4 in the process.
As for Sarah Maninger, she selected Matt Kemp. Kemp has been one of the hottest Dodger bats as of late. However, Sarah had some bad luck as Kemp only got one at-bat as a pinch-hitter. Kemp struck out swinging. So far I am perfect and Sarah did not reset as she was already at zero.
Sarah’s pick (Current streak: 0): Yasmani Grandal
More from LA Sports Hub
- Lakers: 5 Players to Target Through Trades to make another championship run
- LA Chargers: Week 8 against Denver Broncos is a must-win
- LA Rams: Jared Goff wants to keep the Los Angeles title streak going
- Lakers Rumors: Los Angeles Clippers interested in Rajon Rondo
- LA Chargers: Justin Herbert wins AFC Rookie of the Month
WHY:
My pick for today is Yasmani Grandal. The thing about Grandal is that he has been hitting, but the team hasn’t been winning, so his progress is going mostly unnoticed.
If we’re being honest, Grandal is one of the guys on the team who is most likely to get traded, given the Dodgers’ depth at catcher. Though I would hate to see him get traded, I have a good feeling that changes are on the way, given how the Dodgers are playing.
Until then, I think Grandal is going to continue to stay hot, and he could even put the Dodgers front office in a position where trading him would have negative effects on the team, not unlike when Bellinger gave the Dodgers no choice but to keep him in the majors.
Jason’s pick (Current streak: 4): Corey Seager
WHY:
This game is all about the law of averages, at least that is how I see it. Two games ago we used the law of averages to successfully select Cody Bellinger. Today, we are going to do the same thing.
Corey Seager is an elite hitter that has struggled thus far this season. Seager should be floating around .300 every season (hopefully), although that is not yet the case. Right now, Seager stands with a .196 batting average.
However, the season is still young and Seager has plenty of time to turn it around. What is important for this pick though is the fact that Seager went 0-4 on Saturday. Chances are an elite hitter like Seager will not go seven, eight or even nine straight at-bats without a hit. Seager has not gotten a hit in his last five at-bats dating back to Friday.
Next: Three new faces that can save the Dodgers
While the batting average is a bit suspect for these plans, I am confident that Seager will find a base knock somehow. Even at his worst, Seager can plunk the ball in the right-center gap for a single.