Dodgers: Trusting Small Ball in the Division Series

The Dodgers started off their journey to the World Series Friday night the right way, by beating Arizona at home. The series is certain to be marked by fireworks, but don’t forget the importance of small ball.

You’ve heard all the sayings from coaches before, from little league all the way up to the big show. Things like “a hit is as good as a walk,” “good eye kid” and the ever important “way to move the runner over.” This style of chipping away at a defense and exploiting weakness is often referred to as small ball.

For Los Angeles, small ball has been the name of the game all season long. Yes, they were sixth in the National League in home runs. And yes, they were ranked just 19th in all of baseball stealing, only 77 bases.

But they also led all of baseball in walks and were in the top twelve in on-base percentage. The Dodgers spent all year perfecting their situational hitting, moving runners over when necessary to chip away at leads or to pad their scores.

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If there was a man on second and they hit the ball on the ground to the right side, it was a success no matter what happened. If a pitcher could lay down a bunt and move a runner at all, that was even better.

But what they were best at by far, was patience. The Dodgers walked a total of 649 times in the regular season, 27 more than the next best team. And based off of their 104-58 record, small ball may continue to play a role in the playoffs.

Arizona played much like Los Angeles this year, regarding offensive game plans. They ranked 4th in the NL in steals, and 4th in walks as well. Both teams finished with similar power numbers, almost identical in home runs and OPS.

To properly handle Arizona, Los Angeles cannot change who they have been all season. Now is indeed no time to experiment with game plans.

Arizona’s pitching staff ranked somewhere right around league average in walks allowed, so that patience the plate discipline the Dodgers have come to known for will be vital.

In addition to that, Arizona’s pitching allowed the least home runs in the National League to opposing hitters. With that being said, the long ball cannot be something they rely on this series.

If the team can stick with their winning formula they’ve used all season, Arizona’s pitching staff will have a difficult time keeping up.  And considering the Dodgers’ pitching staff had a league-low 3.38 earned run average, they might just have this series in the bag.

Next: October Belongs to Los Angeles

Key Small Ball Players

Curtis Granderson, who made the NLDS roster, will undoubtedly play into the outcome of the series. While he did hit 26 home runs, he was also in the top twenty players in walks for 2017

Justin Turner ranked second in the National League for on-base percentage, aided by his .322 batting average. And boy did he have a first game.

Cody Bellinger burst onto the scene early in the year and crushed 39 home runs in the process. But he also walked 64 times and stole ten bases in just 132 games.