Category: MLB

Mets 2025 first-round pick Mitch Voit made his way to Citi Field on Friday evening to check out the stadium and the facilities a day after signing his new contract with the big league club.

Voit, a standout at the University of Michigan, was selected 38th overall by the Mets and the team has high hopes for the young infielder. Speaking with the media after a round of batting practice, Voit talked about his feelings.

"I’ve just been filled with excitement since Sunday night," Voit said. "I was extremely happy [to sign my contract], but I also understood it’s time to work."

Voit, 20, signed a reported $1.75 million deal with the Mets and detailed the next steps for himself... or as much information as he knows.

"I'm going to head down to Port St. Lucie and then take a deep dive into everything," Voit said. "I don’t necessarily know the next steps heading forward. I know, get down to Port St. Lucie, go through this player development plan we have in place. From then on, I guess we’ll find out."

Voit was asked if he'll play for one of the Mets' affiliates this summer and the second baseman said he wasn't sure, but he'll learn what the organization has planned for him soon enough.

During his Citi Field visit, Voit was introduced to a number of players but one in particular stood out to him. Juan Soto.

"I got to see the beginning of Soto’s routine. It’s very surgical, you would say," Voit described. "Great guy, really friendly to me. Everyone’s been great to me."

Voit played 56 games for the Wolverines this season after undergoing internal brace surgery on his throwing arm last summer. In that time, Voit hit 17 doubles, four triples, 14 home runs, and 60 RBI with a .346/.471/.668 slash line for a 1.140 OPS while walking 40 times to 34 strikeouts.

The Wisconsin native said his attitude at the plate is to get the barrel to the ball and the Mets hope he can develop into a major league hitter. In fact, they see potential in Voit as just a position player. Voit was a two-way player at Michigan, amassing a 9-4 record with a 4.67 ERA across 29 games (11 starts) in two collegiate seasons -- he did not pitch in his final year with Michigan.

Despite that, the Mets and Voit agreed that they will develop him as a position player but the right-hander doesn't rule out the possibility of him climbing the mound in the future.

"Our plan will be to develop me as a position player," Voit said. "I’ve said this before. If it comes down to it, and the only opportunity is to be a big league pitcher for the New York Mets, then yeah. But our plan moving forward would be as a position player... All your experience as a pitcher doesn’t go away. It’ll always be there in my back pocket."

Phillies fail to capitalize on Harper's big night in series-opening loss to Angels originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia

Before Friday’s game Trea Turner said there was ‘a lot of good and a lot of bad’ from the first half of the Phillies season prior to the All-Star break.

The same can be said of their first game after the break.

The Phillies squandered a 4-1 lead and lost 6-5 to the Angels. Their record dropped to 55-42 and they’ve now lost five of their last seven games.

Friday’s loss represented a squandered opportunity, an uneven performance by the home team on a beautiful night for baseball in South Philadelphia.

First, the bad.

Tanner Banks surrendered a two-run home run by Taylor Ward in the seventh inning that broke a 4-4 tie and put the Angels ahead to stay. It was Ward’s 22nd home run of the season, a towering shot to left center field.  

The bullpen was pressed into action early after Jesus Luzardo failed to make it out of the fifth inning. Luzardo allowed seven hits and four earned runs on 95 pitches. He served up a solo home run to Jorge Soler and a two-run homer to Jo Adell. Luzardo’s season ERA climbed to 4.29.

Luzardo’s June and July have been a struggle following a scorching first two months of the season during which he posted a 2.15 ERA in his first 11 starts.

Mike Trout, who entered Friday’s game with two hits in 20 career at-bats at Citizens Bank Park, got the best of Luzardo. Trout doubled and scored a run in the fourth inning before delivering a game-tying RBI single in the fifth.

Despite the result, this series opener against the Angels came with its share of bright spots.

Namely, Bryce Harper has officially heated up. Harper hit a three-run home run in the third inning and a solo shot in the eighth, accounting for his first multi-home run game of the season. Harper added a double in the fifth inning and has nine extra-base hits in his last five games. He’s hitting .500 during that span (10 hits in 20 at-bats).

Kyle Schwarber picked up where he left off at the All-Star game, belting a solo home run on his first swing of the game. Schwarber’s line drive into the right field seats in the first inning increased his season total to 31, tied for the fourth most in baseball.

J.T. Realmuto stayed hot at the plate as well, going 2-for-4 with a double. Realmuto has multiple hits in seven of his last 11 games.

But the contributions from some key bats weren’t enough. The Phillies now turn to Taijuan Walker on Saturday night in hopes of evening this three-game series.

When the Yankees announced their probables for their weekend series against the Braves in Atlanta, Max Fried was noticeably absent.

Fried last pitched on July 12 against the Cubs, where he allowed three earned runs in three innings but was removed due to a blister on the index finger of his throwing hand. The Yankees' southpaw had already pulled out of the All-Star Game to prepare himself for the second half of the season, so New York is skipping his spot in the rotation.

Speaking with the media before Friday's series opener in Atlanta, Fried said he's "hopeful" to pitch in the crucial series with the Blue Jays in Toronto starting Monday. Fried said that he and the Yankees wanted to give their ace more time to heal from the blister and that it is improving. He's been playing catch with no issue and the next step is to throw a bullpen, which he has yet to do.

It makes sense for the Yankees to skip Fried in the rotation for two reasons. The first, as previously mentioned, is to give Fried's finger time to heal. Fried has spent time on the IL four times in his career due to blisters, most recently in September 2023.

The second is that it lines up the Yankees' best starters for Toronto. If Fried is good to go, he, along with Carlos Rodon, will start two of the three games against the Blue Jays.

New York enters the weekend series 2.0 games behind the Blue Jays for first place in the AL East.

Justin Verlander's lack of ‘putaway' pitch dooms Giants in loss to Blue Jays originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

For the twelfth time in sixteen games during the 2025 MLB season, the Giants lost a Justin Verlander start.

In what has become an unfortunately common occurence for the Giants this season, a familiar scene unfolded early in San Francisco’s 4-0 loss to the Toronto Blue Jays on Friday night at Rogers Centre.

Verlander, the three-time Cy Young Award winner who has a spot in Cooperstown reserved for him, once again got rocked early.

Verlander escaped first-inning trouble after the Blue Jays had runners on first and second with one out, coaxing a double-play ball that allowed the Giants to return to the visiting dugout unscathed. The former MLB MVP wouldn’t be so fortunate in the second inning.

Six of the first seven batters Verlander faced in the second inning reached base, allowing Toronto to jump out to a 4-0 lead which would be more than enough with San Francisco’s anemic offense crumbling in every clutch situation they faced in Friday’s loss.

Coming off a few days to reset during the MLB All-Star break, Verlander took the mound with a chance to put a rough first half behind him and send a strong message that even at 42, he still has what it takes to dominate opposing hitters. Instead, it was much of the same in what has been an outlier season for a pitcher that will go down as one of the game’s greats when all is said and done.

Verlander didn’t record a single strikeout against the Blue Jays, the first time this season the nine-time All-Star failed to log at least one punch out during the 2025 season.

“Typically he has got something to get a swing-and-a-miss, didn’t get any strikeouts,” Giants manager Bob Melvin told reporters after Friday’s loss. “Actually, he limited the damage for the amount of base runners he had in less than three innings, but a couple key hits off him and just really didn’t have a putaway pitch today.”

Verlander’s name is one that long has been synonmous with “putaway pitch,” ranking No.10 on MLB’s all-time strikeout leader list with an eye-popping 3,483 punchouts during his decorated career.

While the lack of a putaway pitch allowed the Blue Jays to string together the game’s decisive inning, Melvin noted that the Giants’ offense hasn’t done Verlander any favors with run support this season.

“The fact we haven’t given him much run support,” Melvin said when asked why he believes Verlander can turn things around. “I mean there have been some games where we’ve been behind early on, but it would be nice to give him a nice lead and let him do his thing. The overall numbers aren’t horrible at this point, it’s just we don’t give him much run support and it seems like there are a few games like tonight where we’ve gotten behind early.”

Verlander was blunt while assessing his own performance today, but remained optimistic the mechanical adjustments he has made recently are showing tangible results that should lead to positive regression back toward the player baseball fans have grown accustomed to seeing during his 20-year MLB career.

“Stuff-wise, still fairly optimistic, but had a tough one today, obviously,” Verlander told reporters after Friday’s loss. “They found a way to put a lot of balls in play. Found a lot of holes and the ones they did hit hard found corners, it’s a tough one. But still optimistic thinking about how the mechanical adjustments have helped my stuff. The velocity is better, I think the breaking balls are sharper, all in all.”

Friday’s loss was the 10th time this season the Giants have been shutout, reflecting a season-long trend of San Francisco’s offense failing to give its robust pitching staff the support it so desperately needs in games like these.

Even with Verlander’s struggles, the Giants still boast arguably the league’s best pitching staff across the board. If San Francisco sneaks into the MLB playoffs, they have the kind of arms in their arsenal that have a long-standing track record of being the key recipe to making deep postseason runs.

The unfortunate reality? None of those hypotheticals will matter if Verlander and San Francisco’s offense can’t get on the same page down the stretch run over the next couple of months.

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Mets manager Carlos Mendoza provided injury updates on four players ahead of Friday night's series opener against the Cincinnati Reds to start the second half of the season.

On the designated hitter front, Starling Marte (knee) is nearing a return to action as he continues to do baseball activities, the manager said, adding that while he wasn't sure about timing, he suggested the veteran could be back in around three to five days.

"He's gonna run the bases at high intensity, sprinting, hitting velo machine," Mendoza said of Marte. "But he's definitely progressing."

Jesse Winker will need a bit more time as he received an epidural on Friday, as his back ailment had not been responding as the club had hoped, and they "decided to be a little more aggressive" with the injection, which will shut him down from any activities for another seven to 10 days.

Mendoza said that as far as he knows, there hasn't been any change in the injury, but "he's still a ways away."

Winker sustained the back injury last Thursday, just two games after he returned from an extended time on the IL with an oblique issue.

Injury issues have struck both DHs this year, limiting Marte to 58 games and Winker to just 26. Both have been decent at the plate, posting .739 and .709 OPS, respectively.

The news was not good for reliever Max Kranick,who will undergo Tommy John surgery for a second time in his career.

"You feel for the guy," Mendoza said. "You saw how important he was for us the first couple of months in a pretty important role out of the bullpen, and it just sucks for him and for us, too, honestly.

"Wish him the best, and obviously, we do our best to get him back on the field as quick as possible. It's not ideal."

The righty posted a 3.65 ERA in 37 innings over 24 games in his first big league action since the 2022 campaign.

Jose Siri has not resumed running or baseball activities as he continues to recover from a broken leg he sustained in his 10th game of the season in April before having a setback in his rehab in June. "He's feeling better, but as far as running and all that goes, nothing yet," the manager said, estimating that it could be another week or two before he could resume baseball activities.

Earlier on Friday, the Mets activated left-handed reliever Brooks Raley off the 60-day injured list as he makes his return from Tommy John surgery.

Shohei Ohtani is already well-known as a pitcher and a slugger.

The Dodgers superstar has recently taken on another role: children's book author.

Ohtani's dog, Decoy, is already known as the cutest Nederlandse Kooikerhondje on the planet (and quite possibly the only one to be immortalized in bobblehead form).

Read more:How high are the prices for a Shohei Ohtani, Decoy bobblehead? A seller wants it to fetch $69,420

He has also recently taken on a new role: lead character in a children's book.

Ohtani and HarperCollins Children’s Books announced Thursday the upcoming publication of "Decoy Saves Opening Day," which is available for preorder and will be released on Feb. 3.

Ohtani wrote the book with Michael Blank. Fanny Liem illustrates the story of Decoy's adventures as he races home to find his lucky baseball in hopes of making it back to the stadium in time to throw out the opening pitch.

The cover art indicates Decoy might have been successful in his mission, as it shows illustrated versions of Ohtani and his pooch (with ball in mouth) sharing a happy moment on the diamond with the stands full of cheering fans behind them.

Read more:Dodgers Dugout: Is pitching again hurting Shohei Ohtani at the plate?

“Decoy has been by my side through so many meaningful moments, and I’m excited to share a story that celebrates what makes him so special,” Ohtani said in a press release from HarperCollins. “I hope it brings joy to young readers.”

The book may be a work of fiction, but at least one part of it is based on real life — Decoy actually has "thrown" a ceremonial first pitch before.

Decoy and Shohei with the cutest first pitch you've ever seen. 😭 pic.twitter.com/fEoFRxMOH4

— Los Angeles Dodgers (@Dodgers) August 29, 2024

Get the best, most interesting and strangest stories of the day from the L.A. sports scene and beyond from our newsletter The Sports Report.

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.

Phillies back from the break: Middleton speaks, Nola update, Trout's homecoming originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia

The Phillies returned from the All-Star break rested and energized for a 66-game stretch run that will determine whether the club repeats as NL East champions. They currently hold a half game lead over the second place Mets in the division.

“I liked the energy in the clubhouse today,” manager Rob Thomson said prior to Friday’s series opener against the Angels. “I feel good about where we’re at. We’re pretty healthy and we’re getting healthier. I think we’re in a good spot. You’re always happy to be in first place coming out of the break.”

“A lot of good, a lot of bad in the first half but we’re leading the division,” shortstop Trea Turner said. “We talk early in the year about ‘it’s early, it’s early’ but once you hit that All-Star break it’s time to go. Got to get it off to a good start today and try to finish this thing off and win the division.”

The owner speaks

Phillies Managing Partner and CEO John Middleton met with reporters before Friday’s game to discuss the excitement over bringing the 2026 All-Star Game to Philadelphia.

“I’m really excited,” Middleton said. “The excitement has been building for us for years… but now we’re in a sprint. It’s a marathon but we’re sprinting the marathon.”

The Phillies unveiled the 2026 All-Star Game logo on Friday afternoon and held a pregame ceremony featuring Phillies’ All-Stars past and present.

Middleton acknowledged the All-Star Game as an opportunity to showcase the franchise as well as Citizens Bank Park and mentioned the impact it will have on the entire city.

The conversation turned to the 2025 All-Star Game, namely Kyle Schwarber’s heroics in the ‘swing-off’ that delivered a victory to the National League and earned Schwarber All-Star Game MVP honors.

Might that performance provide extra motivation to keep the soon-to-be free agent in a Phillies uniform after this season?

“No,” Middleton said flatly. ‘We need no motivation whatsoever when it comes to Kyle Schwarber. He’s great. We thought he was great when we signed him (four) years ago. We thought he’s great consistently during the years. There’s nothing Kyle does that surprises us. He’s a great person in the clubhouse. We love him. We want to keep him. We don’t need any motivation whatsoever.”  

Middleton was also asked if he expects Phillies President of Baseball Operations Dave Dombrowski to be aggressive leading up to the July 31st trade deadline.

“He’s always aggressive,” Middleton said. “He doesn’t have another gear besides aggressive. I know he will be.”

What’s the update on Aaron Nola?

The longest tenured Phillie is inching closer towards returning to the Phillies starting rotation. Aaron Nola, who has been sidelined since mid-May with ankle and rib injuries, will throw live batting practice on Saturday.

Thomson said Nola will throw two innings (capped at 35 pitches) of live BP.

“If that goes well, then he’ll have a bullpen (session) probably on Tuesday,” Thomson said. “If that goes well, there’s a chance he goes out (on a rehab assignment).”

Nola hasn’t pitched since May 14th. He is 1-7 with a 6.16 ERA in nine starts this season. Nola had been the picture of durability for the previous eight seasons. So this extended absence has weighed on him.

“Absolutely,” Thomson said. “A guy like that who hasn’t been on the IL for a long time, there’s a tendency to get bored and itchy. He’s motivated. I can see that in him right now.”

Mike Trout’s homecoming

11-time All-Star and three-time AL MVP Mike Trout is the Angels designated hitter for Friday’s game.

The Millville, New Jersey native discussed returning to his hometown for this three-game series against the Phillies.

“To be able to see family, friends, faces I haven’t seen in a while, it’s awesome,” Trout said. “I respect the (Philadelphia) fan base. I know how they are, how they support their teams. That’s how I was growing up. The passion they have, you can see it.”

A large portion of that fan base hasn’t given up hope that Trout will someday play for the Phillies.

It’s a sentiment that he’s well aware of.

“Oh I see it all the time,” Trout said. “Especially when I go to Eagles games. I think just being a South Jersey kid, I’m always going to get it. This was my sports team growing up. Right now I’m enjoying myself with this team. These guys come to the ballpark every day and play hard.”

Trout turns 34 next month. Injuries have cost him significant chunks of the past several seasons, including a month-long IL stint this year due to a knee injury. He’s hitting .238 with 17 home runs and 41 RBI in 70 games this season.

The Mets are getting a key bullpen piece back as the second half of the season starts.

Left-handed reliever Brooks Raley, who has been out since early in the 2024 season due to Tommy John surgery, was activated from the IL ahead of Friday's game against the Reds at Citi Field.

Raley spoke to reporters pregame and said he "recovered really well" and feels "really good", while adding that he was "itching to get back."

"It’s huge. It feels like a trade deadline acquisition," manager Carlos Mendoza said about Raley's return. "We saw it last year for the first couple of months, a lot of you guys saw him the year before that and how special it is to have a guy like that that not only can get lefties out -- he’s a guy that, the way he spins the baseball, you feel good about whether it’s a righty or a lefty.

"The experience. A guy that comes in in the middle of an inning with traffic; clean inning (can) get you three outs. Could be in the ninth, could be in the eighth, could be as early as the sixth. There’s a lot of flexibility there that having a guy like that is important. We definitely missed him and I’m glad that he’s back."

To make room for Raley on the roster, lefty reliever Richard Lovelady was designated for assignment.

Raley, 37, re-signed on a one-year deal with the Mets this April that has a team option for 2026 and called it a "full-circle" moment.

"I believed in my skillset that, when I was healthy, I could show that I had value," he said. "... I thought getting back on the mound was in my best interest."

He was a huge contributor in 2023 during his first season in New York, posting a 2.80 ERA and 1.26 WHIP while striking out 10.0 batters per nine in 54.2 innings over 66 appearances.

"I know the role that I’m supposed to play in this deal and I’m comfortable in that role so when my name’s called I’ll be ready to go," Raley said.

Having not pitched since April of 2024, Mendoza was asked if Raley will be treated cautiously in the early going.

"We’ll be mindful," the skipper said. "But he’s done back-to-back, he did one plus (innings), he did two out of three. Yeah it’s a different level, it’s a different intensity. The pitches are different, especially with a guy that’s gonna be throwing in high leverage (situations), but, again, he checked all those boxes so we’re treating him as a normal pitcher out of the bullpen."

In addition to Raley, the Mets are close to getting another important bullpen piece back.

Jose Buttó, who has been out since June 29 due to an illness, had his rehab assignment transferred to Triple-A Syracuse.

Buttó has been strong this season, with a 2.47 ERA and 1.26 WHIP in 43.2 innings spanning 31 appearances.

Additionally, right-hander Paul Blackburn is set to begin a rehab assignment with the FCL club.

Blackburn has been on the IL since July 3 due to a shoulder impingement.

They have the most wins in the National League. They have an almost 95% chance of winning their division, according to Fangraphs’ computer models. And, in the eyes of Vegas bookmakers, are still the overwhelming favorites to repeat as World Series champions.

Yet, after an up-and-down opening half that saw the Dodgers fall short of their all-time (and, admittedly, somewhat unrealistic) expectations, the team kicks off the second half of its season on Friday night facing plenty of problems, and grappling with important unknowns, as it embarks on the second half of the schedule.

“Good first half,” manager Dave Roberts said before the All-Star break. “But yeah, we should want to get better.”

As the second half gets underway, here are four big questions in the Dodgers’ quest to improve down the stretch and try to defend their 2024 title.

Read more:Hernández: Secret to Yoshinobu Yamamoto's 2025 success? His hero-like effort in NLDS Game 5

Will the pitching get/stay healthy?

It’s an age-old question when it comes to the Dodgers, cast upon a new-look roster battling familiar injury-related headaches.

In a best-case scenario, the Dodgers could end the season with Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Blake Snell, Tyler Glasnow, and Shohei Ohtani (in some capacity) headlining their rotation.

In the bullpen, they could have Blake Treinen, Michael Kopech and Brusdar Graterol bolstering more heavily-used arms like Tanner Scott, Alex Vesia and Kirby Yates — plus wild-card options in Ben Casparius, Emmet Sheehan and Jack Dreyer to serve in more versatile roles on the mound.

But best-case pitching scenarios, of course, have often been unrealized fantasies with the franchise in recent years.

Read more:Hernández: 'Time heals everything.' Freddie Freeman, Braves fans find peace at All-Star Game

Thus, down the stretch this season, the Dodgers’ top priority (after winning the division and securing a first-round bye) will be keeping their arms as healthy as possible.

That will be most important with Glasnow (who just returned from a shoulder injury) and Snell (who should be back from his own shoulder problem in the next couple of weeks). To this point, the Dodgers have signaled a reluctance to urgently pursue a starter at the trade deadline. And even if they did, the lack of available front-line options means it’d be difficult to insure against either (or, in a nightmare world) both going down again.

The Dodgers have been interested in adding to the bullpen, and might set their sights on a legitimate closer given Scott’s season-long struggles. But still, much of their depth will depend on Treinen (who is also nearing a return from a forearm injury), Kopech (who went on the 60-day IL after a knee surgery, but is still expected back this season) and Graterol (who is also still expected to return after missing the first half recovering from offseason shoulder surgery).

The Dodgers also have their fingers crossed on Roki Sasaki (hoping he can return in late August from his own shoulder issue) and haven’t yet ruled out Tony Gonsolin (though he has remained shut down since suffering an elbow injury). But for now, their primary hope is to keep Glasnow and Snell upright, and replenish an overworked bullpen with late-season reinforcements.

What’s next in Shohei Ohtani’s two-way plans?

After pitching three innings for the first time this season in his final outing before the All-Star break, Ohtani appears to be getting closer to full-length starts in his return to pitching.

But the question remains, how long (if ever) it will take him and the Dodgers to get there.

After five abbreviated appearances over the last month-plus, it’s clear Ohtani’s stuff on the mound hasn’t been diminished by a second career Tommy John surgery. He is routinely hitting 100 mph. He has 10 strikeouts in nine total innings. He has given up just one run overall.

However, Ohtani’s bat has cooled since resuming his two-way role. And the full extent of the physical toll being imposed on the 31-year-old superstar is still not yet entirely clear, prompting the Dodgers to be very deliberate in slowly, methodically increasing his workload.

It’s difficult to imagine, barring any unforeseen setbacks, Ohtani not being part of the pitching plan in October given how electric he has looked thus far. But will it be as a glorified three- or four-inning opener? Or in a traditional starting role in which he is asked to work into the sixth or the seventh?

That could depend on the state of the rest of the Dodgers' staff, how Ohtani performs at the plate over the season’s second half, and how his body holds up to a challenge he has never before attempted with a team competing for a playoff spot.

Will Freddie Freeman, Mookie Betts snap slumps?

The Dodgers might have Ohtani and a better supporting cast now. But, as they learned in 2022 and 2023, life can be difficult when Freddie Freeman and Mookie Betts aren’t hitting; especially in the heat of a playoff environment.

And for all their other firepower this season, the Dodgers still need the two ex-MVPs to provide a spark.

For as good as Betts has been defensively this year — still ranking top-10 among MLB shortstops in fielding percentage, outs above average and defensive runs saved — he was 122nd out of 155 qualified hitters in OPS during the first half, with a .696 mark that is more than 100 points worse than his previous career low.

Freeman, meanwhile, went from a National League-leading .374 batting average at the end of May to a .203 mark over June and July, 163rd best out of 184 qualified hitters in that time.

That kind of production will put a drag even on a Dodgers offense with so many other star-level players. If the team is going to be anywhere near its potential offensively, it will need both sluggers to quickly pick things up. Otherwise, their margin for error at the plate come October could be worryingly slim.

What’s real (and not) from rest of the lineup?

There are myriad questions for the rest of the Dodgers’ lineup, too, where first-half performances ranged from unexpectedly spectacular to unimaginably difficult.

The Dodgers leaned heavily on Will Smith and his NL-best .323 batting average to provide consistent production. Can he replicate that in the second half of the season? Or will he fall victim to the late-summer slides that have plagued him throughout his career?

For large stretches of the opening half, Andy Pages looked like an All-Star and one of the most trustworthy run-producers in the middle of the order (an important role for a Dodgers team that always generates ample opportunities, but can struggle to capitalize upon them). But he also entered the All-Star break in a two-week slump. If he can revert back to being a near .300 hitter, it could significantly help lengthen a sometimes top-heavy lineup.

Read more:Shaikin: How to revitalize baseball's All-Star Game? Bat flips

Conversely, Teoscar Hernández has looked out of sync ever since returning from a groin injury in May, batting just .209 since then. As one of the most clutch performers during last year’s World Series run, there are real questions about whether he can regain enough health and consistency to replicate such heroics this fall.

Tommy Edman, meanwhile, has been valuable defensively, and was a surprise early-season slugger with eight home runs in March and April. Since then, though, he has posted below-league-average numbers, and entered the break in a two-for-32 rut.

One X-factor could be Hyeseong Kim, who turned heads in limited early-season playing time (.339 average, .842 OPS and 11-for-11 on steals in 48 games) and figures to get more everyday opportunities in Max Muncy’s absence in the coming weeks.

Muncy himself poses another big unknown. Roberts said the early reports on his recovery from a bone bruise in his knee have been encouraging. But, the Dodgers have not looked the same since losing him from the lineup. And though he is expected to return, just how limiting the lingering effects of his injury will be could have important implications on the state of the Dodgers’ offense.

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This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.