Dodgers: Takeaways from the Dodger offense after two games

The Dodgers lost 4-2 on Friday night and will resume their series in Washington D.C. on Sunday night.  LA’s offense will look for better results.

On Friday night, the Dodgers ran into a buzz-saw named Stephen Strasburg.  Even on short rest, Strasburg was absolutely dominant as he fired six shutout innings and struck out ten Dodger batters while allowing just three hits.  Strasburg had his curveball and changeup working and it kept the Dodgers in check until his departure from the game.

Max Scherzer came in and struck out the side in the eighth inning after Sean Doolittle pitched one inning allowing a solo home run to Max Muncy.  Scherzer is expected to start game three on Sunday evening, so the road will not get any easier for the Dodger offense.  While the offense has struggled it will be hard to do worse than they already have.  Here are three takeaways from the offense so far.

Paging the potential NL MVP

Cody Bellinger had a historic season, one that might end up winning him the National League MVP award.  Through two games of the 2019 postseason he appears to have reverted back to his previous playoff form.  Bellinger is yet to record a hit and is now 0-6 with four strikeouts through two games.  It will not be easy for Cody to break out of his slump with Max Scherzer likely to start game three.

If the Dodgers are going to get past the Nationals they are going to need Cody Bellinger to deliver a big hit that sparks the offense on Sunday.  Belli will need to avoid pressing and just let the game come to him.  The Nationals are going to pitch around him and get him to chase their pitches.  All it takes is one big hit and the pressure will be off of Cody Bellinger.  Hopefully he gets that big hit in Sunday’s game.

While Bellinger is not the only Dodger in a major slump, he has the most expected of him after his potential MVP season.

Max Muncy locked in this October

Ending the article on a positive note, Max Muncy has been absolutely dialed in at the plate through the first two games of the series.  After delivering two hits and three runs batted in during game one, Muncy blasted a no doubt solo home run in game two that at the time, cut the Nationals’ lead down to a single run.

It wasn’t too long ago that many including myself feared a potential power outage for Max Muncy after he suffered a fractured wrist in September.  When Max first returned it was clear that his wrist had not healed to full strength.  It wasn’t until the final week of the regular season that Muncy started showing signs of power again.

Through two games of the postseason, Muncy appears to be at full strength yet again.  His home run in game two was a telltale sign that the wrist is feeling alright.  Muncy is one of the few Dodgers that have had success in the past against Max Scherzer.  He is 3-9 lifetime against the other Mad Max and the Dodgers could use another big hit from him on Sunday.

If it wasn’t for Max Muncy the Dodgers would likely be down 0-2 staring at elimination unless they rattled off three straight wins.  His bases loaded walk in the first inning of game one, served as the only run scored until Muncy delivered again later on in the game.  Cody Bellinger may be the NL MVP but so far Max Muncy has been the Dodgers’ MVP in October.