Dodgers slowed by Padres, but Chris Taylor continues to turn the corner
by Cary Osborne
The Dodgers lost 7–5 to the Padres on Saturday, ending a three-game winning streak. But it was the kind of loss Dodger manager Dave Roberts said he could stomach for a number of reasons.
The offense produced enough runs and got ahead of the Padres midway through the game. And it was simply an uncharacteristic night for starter Alex Wood, who surrendered three home runs and allowed five earned runs in 5 1/3 innings.
But the loss was easier to take because of another noticeable positive trend — Chris Taylor’s continued offensive surge.
The second pitch he saw in the game on Saturday, Taylor clubbed it over the wall in left-center field at Dodger Stadium.
And the last pitch he saw was the 10th of the at-bat in the bottom of the ninth inning. The battle with San Diego reliever Brad Hand ended in a fly out to right field.
Taylor also doubled in the third inning.
Since May 15, a span of 10 games, Taylor is batting .290/.463/.581/1.044. He has walked eight times in the 10 games, compared to 14 in the previous 40.
“There are some things he’s been working through to get synched up mechanically and be on time,” said manager Dave Roberts. “You look at tonight, the contact point was good. He was on time. It’s one of those things he had to work through. Right now he’s seeing (the ball) pretty dang well.”
Taylor said he’s been working on some mechanical stuff to right what was a slow start to the season.
“I’ve been messing around with my hand-load, and then today I was just thinking a little differently with my (swing) path,” Taylor said. “But nothing you could see form the naked eye.”
Taylor was the leadoff hitter in 35 of the Dodgers’ first 37 games. In those games, he batted .232 with a .304 on-base percentage.
For the next 11 games, Taylor led off just twice, occupying the six spot in the lineup most frequently.
Since returning to the top of the order on May 23, he’s reached base six times in 13 plate appearances.
“I just believe in the player, the preparation and the fight,” Roberts said on why he has stuck with Taylor. “Yeah, we moved him down in the lineup to get him a different look, but as far as my confidence in him that he’d figure it out, that never wavered.”
“It’s huge,” Taylor said of Roberts’ confidence in him. “Understanding that no matter what, he’s going to stick with you, it takes some of the pressure off and gives you a little leeway to play relaxed.”
Turner hits №1
In the bottom of the fourth inning, Justin Turner took San Diego starter Jordan Lyles deep for a solo home run — Turner’s first of the year. It was the first of a three-run inning for the Dodgers.
Logan Forsythe singled in a run, and a Joc Pederson groundout plated another. The Dodgers were up 4–2 at that point and took a 5–3 lead in the fifth on a Cody Bellinger bases loaded walk.
But Christian Villanueva hit a two-run homer in the top of the sixth to tie the score. The Padres added a run in the seventh on a two-out single by Jose Pirela off Scott Alexander. Villanueva hit a solo homer off Josh Fields in the eighth.
