Wednesday, May 13, 2026

Copyrighted by Sarah Morris, 2026

The Los Angeles Dodgers have had offensive production problems since the first road trip of the 2026 season.

This wasn’t expected. After all, the Dodgers have Shohei Ohtani, Mookie Betts, Freddie Freeman, Will Smith, and Kyle Tucker.

Yes, every baseball team goes through offensive slumps over the course of the 162-game season, but the Dodgers’ slump is getting too long.

Many members of the media think the Dodgers are too old to perform well. While they are older, their collective age isn’t responsible for their recent offensive woes.

In the recent past, everyone praised the Dodgers for their patience at the plate. However, the ABS System has changed the method by which balls and strikes are called.  During the game, umpires now receive immediate feedback on the strike zone. Instead of an oval, the strike zone is a rectangle. If an umpire misses a call, unless the opposition is out of challenges, the call is overturned.

Don’t get me wrong, the Dodgers still need to be patient, but I think the Dodgers are making hitting too complicated. Sometimes, a player needs to go back to the basics. See the ball, hit the ball.

Since the start of the season, the bottom of the lineup has been fantastic. Now, they are slumping. It happens. Hyeseong Kim will return to slapping the ball everywhere.

Max Muncy and Andy Pages have been the most consistent hitters for the Dodgers. For the first time since 2021, when Muncy dislocated his left elbow, he feels great. He is batting .272 with 11 home runs. His batting average should be higher because he has been hitting the ball hard, but frequently, good defensive plays by the opposition have retired him.

After a brutal postseason offensive performance, Andy Pages started this season hot. Even after a short slump, he has a .318 batting average with 9 home runs and 35 RBI. He has exhibited much better discipline and plate coverage.

Ohtani has struggled since getting hit in the shoulder blade, but on Tuesday, he had two hits, including a solo home run. He might be coming out of it.

From the trip to Colorado, the Dodgers have looked tight. While they were in Denver, they caught a nasty upper respiratory illness, sapping everyone’s strength and joy. Now, they have fallen into bad habits. It takes time to break out of them.

The batting coaches have been working overtime to help the hitters get out of their funk. Players are taking extra batting practice to improve.

Everyone needs to relax and remember baseball is a game to be enjoyed. The Dodgers are a good team that will be in the playoffs. This offensive lull won’t last forever. Soon, the weather will get hot, making the ball fly out of Dodger Stadium. When it does, the Dodgers will score more and begin winning.