Freddie Freeman not in Dodgers’ starting lineup for Game 6
As Freddie Freeman walked off the field following a round of batting practice during a Saturday off-day before Game 6 of the National League Championship Series, he and Dave Roberts had yet to discuss his status for Sunday’s potentially pennant-clinching game.
The dejected look on Freeman’s face, however, said enough.
As Roberts had hinted this week, Freeman was not in the starting lineup for Sunday’s Game 6, held out after recording just one hit in his previous 15 at-bats while battling a limiting sprained ankle.
“I’m not gonna compromise his health, or certainly winning a game tomorrow, if he’s not mentally and/or physically ready to go,” Roberts said during his off-day press conference.
Evidently, Freeman wasn’t.
“Just doesn’t feel like himself,” Roberts said before Sunday’s game. “So we just felt that potentially another day would help.”
The lineup news didn’t come as much of a surprise. Despite missing just two of the Dodgers’ first 10 games in these playoffs, while battling an ankle injury he said would typically require a four-to-six-week injured list stint in the regular season, Freeman’s play had started to slip during the New York phase of the NLCS.
The eight-time All-Star and former NL most valuable player was clearly not moving well. His ankle was not only hampering his swing, but preventing him from working through mechanical issues he’d felt at the plate as well.
And even though Freeman took several rounds of batting practice on Saturday, he didn’t look thrilled with how the ball was coming off his bat, repeatedly shaking his head as he talked with coaches between his trips inside the net.
“I do think the swing is compromised because of the ankle,” Roberts said of Freeman. “He’s grinding.”
Freeman still could be available off the bench. And, as Roberts noted, the Dodgers are hoping that, if they advance to the World Series, the career .300 hitter will benefit from the extra rest.
But on Sunday, at least, they’ll have to try to get there without him at first base.
Here is the rest of the Dodgers’ lineup for Game 6, with Max Muncy shifting to first, Kiké Hernández taking over at third and Andy Pages in center field:
Two unsung heroes may have set up the Dodgers for success in NLCS Game 6
NEW YORK — The list of Dodgers center fielders to hit two home runs in a postseason game was not long. It consisted of one player, Hall of Famer Duke Snider, the former Brooklyn Dodgers star who homered twice in Game 6 of the 1952 World Series and Game 5 of the 1955 World Series against the New York Yankees.
That list doubled in size Friday night when Andy Pages, a 23-year-old rookie from Cuba, hit a solo home run in the fourth inning and a three-run shot in the fifth, both to left-center field, one of two bright spots for the Dodgers in a 12-6 loss to the New York Mets in Game 5 of the National League Championship Series at Citi Field.
Pages, who was demoted to triple-A Oklahoma City in August and had one hit and four strikeouts in his first 10 playoff at-bats, also singled in the second inning, a three-hit, four-RBI effort that the Dodgers were unable to capitalize on but which could be significant when the series returns to Los Angeles for Game 6 on Sunday night.
Dodgers hopeful their cautious bullpen usage will pay off in NLCS Game 6
All year long, the Dodgers have been reluctant to use their top relievers in “minus” games, as manager Dave Roberts likes to call contests where his team is facing an early deficit.
In Game 5 of the National League Championship Series, the cost of that strategy became clear.
A slim early-game deficit against the New York Mets ballooned to an insurmountable seven-run hole when the Dodgers left Jack Flaherty in for a five-run third inning. Even though the offense responded by scoring five times after that, the New York lead had grown too big for the Dodgers to complete a come-from-behind win.
Michael Kopech will be the opener for Dodgers in Game 6 bullpen game
Dave Roberts said the Dodgers’ would be more aggressive with their high-leverage relievers in their Game 6 bullpen game.
Given who is opening, he wasn’t kidding.
The Dodgers will start Michael Kopech on Sunday, using the closest thing they had to a designated closer at the end of the regular season first out of the gate in Game 6.
“I think we just all felt that it’s a part of a lineup that we like Michael. He’s started games before. And just feel that it’s the best chance to put up a zero in the first inning and then move forward.”
Who the Dodgers turn to after Kopech isn’t clear. But the Game 6 plan will almost certainly look different than Game 2, when rookie starter Landon Knack entering the game in the second inning and gave up five runs in an eventual 7-3 loss.
Kopech is a former starting pitcher who only shifted to the bullpen this spring with the Chicago White Sox. Since being acquired by the Dodgers at the trade deadline, Kopech has been dominant with his 100 mph fastball, posting a 1.13 ERA in 24 regular-season outings, including six saves, and five scoreless outings in the playoffs.
Freddie Freeman is hurting, and the Dodgers need to keep him on the bench
NEW YORK — Freddie Freeman should not be playing right now. Doctors told him that his sprained ankle generally takes at least four weeks to heal. He has played on the ankle for two weeks now, and the results are getting worse.
In the sixth inning of Friday’s game, Freeman got three 97-mph fastballs. He tipped one foul. He swung and missed at the other two.
Can he still generate the power needed to be productive at bat?
“I don’t know,” he said. “I haven’t had an extra-base hit in a while.”
Game 5 rewind: Dodgers can’t overcome Jack Flaherty’s struggles
NEW YORK — Before the sun had set in Queens on Friday night, Dodgers manager Dave Roberts faced a dilemma.
It was the third inning of Game 5 of the National League Championship Series. His club was facing an early but hardly insurmountable two-run deficit. And with pitcher Jack Flaherty lacking both command and velocity, Roberts had three fraught options before him.
1. Stick with Flaherty and hope he could settle down.
2. Summon a lower-leverage arm like Brent Honeywell or Landon Knack and hope they could hold the deficit.
3. Turn to a high-leverage reliever and risk wasting a valuable arm with a likely bullpen game looming in Game 6.
Dodgers vs. Mets: How to watch and betting odds for Game 6
The Dodgers continue the postseason Sunday when they face the New York Mets in Game 6 of the National League Championship Series at Dodger Stadium. The Dodgers lead the best-of-seven series 3-2.
The game is scheduled to start at 5:08 p.m. PDT and will air on FS1 and Fox Deportes. Radio broadcasts of the game will be on 570 AM and 1020 AM (Español) in the Los Angeles area.
Here are the betting odds for Game 6:
If there is a Game 7, it will be played at Dodger Stadium on Monday at 5:08 p.m. PDT. Fox and Fox Deportes would broadcast the game.