Los Angeles Dodgers Beat the Streak Selections — April 17
By Jason Reed
The Los Angeles Dodgers won two straight for the first time since the opening series with a 10-3 victory over the San Diego Padres.
The Dodger bats are finally waking up and hopefully will aid the Los Angeles Dodgers to recover from the early season hole the team has dug. In back-to-back wins over the Diamondbacks and Padres, the Dodgers outscored the opposition 17-5.
While we want to stray away from over reactions here at LA Sports Hub, this offensive showcase was good for out Beat the Streak series.
The Dodgers are sending Alex Wood to the mound Tuesday night; the Padres send right-hander Bryan Mitchell, who owns a 5.27 ERA on the season. As far as the Beat the Streak is concerned, the Dodgers should be just fine in collecting hits off of Mitchell.
Monday’s picks:
Monday was a good day for LA Sports Hub’s Beat the Streak. Both selections were successful and both had a pretty good night at the plate. Sarah’s pick, Cody Bellinger, collected one hit in three at-bats with two walks; scoring three runs in the process.
As for my pick, Matt Kemp, he went 2-2 with a big three-run home run, his second back on the Dodgers. Thus, we enter Tuesday’s contest looking to extend the streak even further.
Sarah’s pick (Current streak: One): Yasiel Puig
WHY:
My pick for today is the one and only Wild Horse. Just the other day I was thinking about those brief, yet noteworthy moments when rumors floated about the Dodgers trading Puig to the Red Sox for Jackie Bradley Jr. Can you imagine the Dodgers trading Puig, the talented version of Puig we see now, to another team? Me neither.
I think that Puig has really stepped up over the past two years. Turner Ward took Puig’s swing and redesigned the mechanics of it. Putting aside his Gold Glove-worthy defense in right, Puig is capable of hitting 30+ homers a year.
He’s just about to get hot for LA, and when he does he may just bring his Dodgers’ offense with him, straight to the top of the leaderboards.
Jason’s pick (Current streak: Six): Chris Taylor
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WHY:
Well, I am perfect for the series thus far and hopefully can ride that momentum into a seven-game streak. By the way, a 57-game streak is incredible, I am at six and I feel like a baseball genius. I cannot even fathom successfully selecting 50 more Dodgers to get a hit.
However, I am going to stick to my guns and my selecting process by playing the law of averages and select lead-off man Chris Taylor. Last time I was at Petco Park Chris Taylor blasted a home run into the left-field seats. On Tuesday, I have a feeling he might do the same.
Again, though, the law of averages. Taylor is hitting .212 on the season, and while that is not good, it is safe to assume at his very worst he is good for two hits every ten at-bats. Taylor is yet to get hot and that will likely improve, but hear me out.
Chris Taylor went 0-5 in Monday’s contest against the Padres. Thus, at least as far as practical wisdom is concerned, four more at-bats should guarantee a hit from Taylor. It does not always work that way, but it has worked for me thus far.
Next: Are the Dodgers finally gaining momentum?
Chris Taylor, lead-off home run. Bookmark this article. If he does indeed hit the home run, well, I told you so.