Dodgers: 5 Obstacles That Stand in the Way of Winning a World Series

The Lefty Struggles Continue

I wrote an article last week that touched on the struggles vs. lefties the Dodgers have dealt with since last season. Ultimately, it ended up being a major contributor in their elimination from the playoffs. This year the Dodgers made additions to fix the problem, but will it be enough to take them to the next level?

Since I touched on the Dodgers’ struggles, they have faced a total of three lefties (Kyle Freeland, Tyler Anderson, and Jon Lester). In those games, they roughed up the starters for seven runs. Not too bad right? Well, five of the runs came against Anderson in a game at Coors Field that had terrible wind conditions. In the other two starts, the Dodgers were held to a total of two runs on eight hits. Yes, it may only be nine games into the season, but I am starting to worry about the struggles carrying over.

I am a firm believer that the team will eventually put it together and fix their struggles against southpaws because they are too talented not to. For the time being, however, they do not look like an improved offense against lefties. They have had issues with guys who are much less talented than the pitchers they would face come October. It’s still only April, so I’m not going to freak out over the issue. And who knows, the Dodgers might even make a move at the deadline to fix the problem. Or maybe they won’t…