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Dodgers: National League Championship Series Positional Breakdown

By Hector Ponce

ATLANTA, GA - OCTOBER 08: Manny Machado #8 of the Los Angeles Dodgers celebrates his three run homerun with teammates in the dugout during the seventh inning of Game Four of the National League Division Series against the Atlanta Braves at Turner Field on October 8, 2018 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Rob Carr/Getty Images)
ATLANTA, GA - OCTOBER 08: Manny Machado #8 of the Los Angeles Dodgers celebrates his three run homerun with teammates in the dugout during the seventh inning of Game Four of the National League Division Series against the Atlanta Braves at Turner Field on October 8, 2018 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Rob Carr/Getty Images) /
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MILWAUKEE, WI – OCTOBER 05: (L-R) Ryan Braun #8, Lorenzo Cain #6, and Christian Yelich #22 of the Milwaukee Brewers celebrate their 4-0 win in Game Two of the National League Division Series over the Colorado Rockies at Miller Park on October 5, 2018 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. (Photo by Stacy Revere/Getty Images)
MILWAUKEE, WI – OCTOBER 05: (L-R) Ryan Braun #8, Lorenzo Cain #6, and Christian Yelich #22 of the Milwaukee Brewers celebrate their 4-0 win in Game Two of the National League Division Series over the Colorado Rockies at Miller Park on October 5, 2018 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. (Photo by Stacy Revere/Getty Images) /

Outfield

The Dodgers will still be using a platoon in the outfield. The Brewers on the other hand have their outfield set in stone and all hitting at the top of the lineup. Braun-Cain-Yelich.

With lefties starting games 1 and 2 in Milwaukee the Dodgers will counter with their LHP lineup. Meaning Chris Taylor and Matt Kemp getting inserted into the lineup. Cody Bellinger started against Newcomb of the Brewers so it will be interesting to see if Doc will employ the same lineup against Milwaukee’s duo of lefties. Maybe Hernandez will get moved into center with Dozier or Muncy taking over at second.

Lorenzo Cain is and always has been one of my favorite players to watch. He plays the game hard and his raw athleticism mixed with his high baseball IQ. Cain helps set the tone for this offense at the top of their lineup. Along with his offensive prowess and extensive playoff experience, Cain plays gold glove defense and is one of the best defensive outfielders in the bigs.

Ryan Braun will man left field. The 2011 NL MVP (runner-up) is without a doubt towards the back end of his career. He has gained the ire of many Los Angeles fans for stealing that MVP award from Kemp. Nonetheless, Braun has been tremendous in his post season career. Posting a .380 AVG and 1.007 OPS in 71 at bats.

Now to the star of this outfield Christian Yelich. A player who’s second half explosion will likely earn him his first ever NL MVP award.  Meaning the Marlins would have trade back to back MVP’s over the course of the same off-season, but that’s a discussion for a different article. Yelich has been absolutely phenomenal. He was just shy of earning the Triple Crown but he did win the batting title.

Yelich has always been a good contact hitter. This season he finally broke out for power. He mashed 36 home runs which was 15 more than his previous career high. Yelich also also improved his OPS by .200 points from last season. He is also able to hit well against both right and left-handed pitchers which is huge because of the Dodgers repertoire of pitchers.

These three players are going to be the driving force for this offense. They will provide a lot of the offense for Milwaukee. The Dodgers outfield is good, but just not on par with that of the Brewers.

Outfield: Advantage Brewers

Tied, 1-1

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