Dodgers: Alex Verdugo’s Rookie Season Hits a Speed Bump

After a red hot opening month for the Dodgers, Alex Verdugo’s rookie season has hit a speed bump lately.  The rookie outfielder is looking to break out of his slump.

The 2019 National League rookie class features plenty of good young hitters like Fernando Tatis Jr, Peter Alonso, Austin Riley, and the Dodgers own Alex Verdugo.  After spending most of the 2018 season trapped in Triple-A due to the Dodgers’ loaded roster, Verdugo finally started the regular season in Los Angeles for the first time of his career.

In April, Alex Verdugo was red hot at the plate.  He hit .328 and more surprisingly he hit four home runs posting an OPS over .900.  While “Dugie” is not known for his power, he hit the ball hard in the first full month of the season, slugging four long balls.  Then as of late, the talented rookie has been mired in a mini-slump for the Dodgers.

Over the last fifteen games, Verdugo has hit just .216 with an on-base percentage of .283.  Over his last thirty games, Alex has not homered and posted a slash line of .255/.328/.343.  He went hitless in Saturday’s game and in a smaller sample size, he has hit just .138 over his last seven games.  It’s safe to say that the rookie’s season has hit a speed bump.

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While Verdugo may not hit as well as he did in April over the long haul, he was still very good in May which produced a much more reasonable expectation.  In May, Dugie posted a line of .296/.371/.407 and while he hit zero home runs, he produced his power by hitting to the gaps.  His May slash line is a reasonable expectation for what could be expected from Verdugo going forward.

Alex should turn it around soon but right now he is pressing a bit at the plate.  Saturday he went 0-5 and in his final at-bat he struck out by chasing a pitch up and out of the strike zone.  After striking out just eight times in April and eight times in May, Dugie has already struck out six times in June despite only having 25 at-bats so far.  One of Verdugo’s best traits is his ability to avoid strikeouts so this is a tell-tale sign that he is pressing.

Outside of Cody Bellinger’s MVP type breakout season, Alex Verdugo has been one of the biggest surprises this season.  He has immediately made a strong impact and with A.J. Pollock missing time due to his elbow infection, he has helped fill Pollock’s absence in the lineup.  While he may not win rookie of the year, Verdugo has been an impactful rookie for the Dodgers and will play a big part in the Dodgers attempting to get over their World Series hump.