After an even 100 wins in the regular season, the Los Angeles Dodgers secured that sweet first-round bye, setting them up nicely for October baseball. While eight other teams are battling it out in the Wild Card matchups, the Dodgers are chilling for a bit, prepping to face whoever wins between the Atlanta Braves and Philadelphia Phillies. But don’t let the calm fool ya, there are some serious questions lurking about who’s actually gonna make this postseason roster and where everyone’s at physically.
The Kid’s Got Pop, But Where Does He Play?
One name that’s definitely got people talking is 21-year-old outfielder Josue De Paula. This kid totally made a splash when he filled in for the then-injured Shohei Ohtani, putting up a ridiculous .323/.500/.581 slash line across 42 plate appearances. Talk about making your presence known! He got sent down to Triple-A Oklahoma City after that, but MLB.com’s Sonja Chen thinks both De Paula and utility man Hyeseong Kim could still impact the postseason roster. Here’s the kicker though: Chen figures De Paula would be stuck in pinch-hit situations because he hasn’t gotten enough big-league reps in the outfield. Sure, he can play corner outfield, but we only saw him out there for a measly six innings in left as a Dodger. With defense being such a massive deal in October, it sounds like he’s a pinch-hit emergency only, unless something wild happens.
Ohtani’s Swing Prep: All Systems Go?
Meanwhile, Shohei Ohtani has had all of September to get ready for his third straight postseason run with the Dodgers. With three days left to prep for the NLDS, Ohtani is reportedly using every minute to get his swing locked in, per Sonja Chen. Dodgers GM Brandon Gomes sounds pretty optimistic, saying on a Zoom call, “Everything is feeling great physically. The swings, once he came back, overall were in a good place. And using these five days to continue to get reps and feeling good into this series is really important. But feels like he’s in a great spot.” That’s the kind of confidence you wanna hear from your GM, especially with Ohtani heading into the biggest games of the year.
Freeman’s Mechanics: A Race Against Time
Now, here’s where things get a little spicy: Freddie Freeman. The guy’s power just straight up vanished in the second half of the regular season. We’re talking one home run and a .339 slugging percentage. Yikes. Turns out he’s been dealing with patellar tendonitis in his right knee. The good news? Jack Harris of the California Post reports Freeman is feeling “a lot better” physically heading into the NLDS. Freeman himself said Tuesday during a video conference, “I truly feel good right now, physically. So it’s on me now to figure out the mechanics of the swing in the next five days. And I have all the confidence in myself that I will figure that out by [Game 1 on] Saturday.” That’s a bold statement, and Dodgers fans gotta be holding their breath that he can find that swing magic in just a few days.
The Dodgers have got their first NLDS game coming up this Saturday. They’re still waiting to see if it’ll be the Braves or the Phillies they’re facing. With Freeman scrambling to find his swing and questions swirling around their depth, these next few days of prep are absolutely massive. They need everyone firing on all cylinders if they wanna make a deep run.
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by True Blue LA.
Leave a Reply