Mookie Betts was again at shortstop and Teoscar Hernández remained in proper subject for the Dodgers on Tuesday, a day after two questionable fielding performs within the outfield led to 2 runs in a 4-3 walk-off loss to the last-place Colorado Rockies.
Hernándezs protection has more and more develop into a matter of concern for supervisor Dave Roberts and Mondays loss was adopted by a gathering involving Roberts; Andrew Friedman, the Dodgers president of baseball operations; and Betts, who has expressed a willingness to maneuver again to proper subject the place he was a six-time gold glove winner.
Hernández is ranked sixty fourth amongst Nationwide League proper fielders with a defensive WAR of -0.4 and his two errors are tied for fourth-most within the league.
He’s obtained to get higher on the market. There’s simply no solution to put it, Roberts mentioned after Monday’s sport of Hernández. It’s not a scarcity of effort. However, you understand, weve simply obtained to sort of get higher. We do.
Betts, in the meantime, twice led the American League in fielding common and putouts because the Boston Pink Soxs proper fielder. However hes performed full time at shortstop full time this season.
Protection is an enormous a part of postseason baseball and successful baseball, Roberts mentioned.
Betts transfer to the infield has arguably weakened the Dodgers in two methods: Hernándezs protection and Betts offense. Enjoying the infield, particularly shortstop, is much extra taxing mentally than enjoying within the outfield and Betts is slashing a career-low .242/.312/.370 this season.
Learn extra: Mookie Betts meets with Dave Roberts, Andrew Friedman after Dodgers’ loss to Rockies
Transferring Betts again to proper subject would seemingly imply utilizing Alex Freeland or Miguel Rojas at shortstop, at the very least within the quick time period. Freeland performed almost 300 video games at shortstop within the minors whereas Rojas has performed greater than 940 video games there within the majors.
Hernández, second on the staff with 74 RBIs and tied for second with 20 dwelling runs, would then transfer to left subject a less-demanding place defensively than proper subject rather than Michael Conforto, whose .190 batting common is the worst within the majors amongst gamers with at the very least 300 at-bats.
Transferring Betts again to the outfielder may very well be simpler for Roberts when utility gamers Tommy Edman, Hyeseong Kim and Kiké Hernández return from the injured listing, giving the supervisor extra depth and adaptability. Kim, who will start a rehab task this week, is the furthest alongside and may very well be again by early subsequent week.
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This story initially appeared in Los Angeles Instances.