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A simple change opened up a dramatic offensive turnaround for Dodgers left fielder Teoscar Hernández.

Hernández’s two-run homer Tuesday, in the Dodgers’ 4-0 win against the Reds, was his second home run in as many nights, as the team trimmed its magic number to clinch the division to one behind Yoshinobu Yamamoto’s seven innings of one-hit ball. And, significantly, this one was against a right-handed pitcher.

“It’s been very helpful,” manager Dave Roberts said after the game. “As certain guys are not seeing the ball as well, it’s nice to kind of backfill with guys like Teo swinging the bat. And when you can slug like he can, you can win baseball games, and he can carry us for a while. And the last 10 days, something like that, it’s been really good from him.”

Through the end of August, Hernández had just a .668 OPS against right-handed pitchers this season. So, when Roberts was asked in Detroit whether the Dodgers would consider setting up a left-field platoon with the team’s September call-ups, he said yes.

Hernández homered off Tigers left-hander Framber Valdez on the last day of the series. And before the Dodgers opened a three-game set against the Cardinals at Dodger Stadium, Hernández met with the hitting coaches.

Against Valdez, Hernández was in a closed stance, to delay his front hip from opening, according to Dodgers hitting coach Aaron Bates. But the team’s hitting group thought a return to a familiar setup could be a long-term solution.

“It was a great meeting we had,” Bates said. “We all talked about it, and then he felt comfortable enough to do it, and then the rest is to his credit. He’s just been who he is.”

Read more:Dodgers might be forced to leave Edwin Díaz off postseason roster

In the past, Hernández had used a “twister tap” as his stride. He started in a more open stance, tapped his toe in line with the pitcher, and then set his foot down. But lower-body injuries the last couple of years — a left groin strain last season and a left hamstring strain earlier this season — forced him away from it.

His improved health and hip flexibility opened up the avenue for him to return to that timing mechanism.

“When Teo’s hips are loose that way, and his front leg looks like an Elvis knee, it’s a good sign for us,” Bates said. “Because that means that he can open and close it without his upper body going with it.”

The advantage of the twister tap, as Hernández explained it, is how repeatable it is. A more traditional stride can be sped up or slowed down.

“Just being able to control my body and being in a good position,” Hernández said earlier this month. “I can see the pitch a little sooner and identify what kind of pitch it is and if it’s going to be a strike or a ball.”

With that change, he’s rewarded the Dodgers for deciding against platooning left field. Hernández entered Tuesday with a .777 OPS against right-handed pitchers — a sample size of just 28 plate appearances but still a significant jump.

“The biggest thing is his plate coverage away,” Bates said. “Because now he can spoil pitches, and he’s staying in at-bats longer.”

Hernández’s dramatic offensive turnaround, along with fellow corner outfielder Kyle Tucker’s improvement, have helped steady a Dodgers offense that’s missing Shohei Ohtani (on the IL with right biceps and left knee injuries) and includes a hobbled Freddie Freeman (right knee soreness).

Rookie Josue De Paula, mostly filling in for Ohtani at designated hitter, has already shown he can take mature at-bats and provide some pop. But he’s still finding his footing in a new league.

It lengthens the Dodgers lineup for Hernández, after a slow start to his year, to return to being a veteran power threat — just in time to, ideally, carry the momentum into the postseason.

On Monday, he launched his two-run shot off left-hander Nick Lodolo. On Tuesday, he replicated the feat off right-hander Rhett Lowder.

Read more:Dodgers Dugout: Mason and Ireland answer some questions about the Dodgers

On the second pitch of the at-bat, Hernández recognized a hung slider, and he roped it over the left-field fence at 109.3 mph, according to Statcast. The blast put the Dodgers up 3-0 in the third inning, with Dodgers starter Yamamoto settling into a groove on the other side.

Yamamoto had walked the first two batters he faced, but he reined in his control to pitch seven scoreless innings and allow just one more baserunner, on a double by Reds star shortstop Elly De La Cruz.

The Dodgers also scored on Hunter Feduccia’s second-inning single and Alex Freeland’s seventh-inning homer. And the Dodgers bullpen completed the shutout.

Freeman staying in the lineup

Freeman was all smiles after his three-hit game Tuesday — after going hitless for his last four games.

“I was supposed to be off tomorrow, but I played myself in there,” he said. “So I’m very excited.”

Roberts explained: “He was joking, saying, ‘If I get three hits, then can I be in there tomorrow?’”

Sure enough, the mechanical adjustments he made in the batting cage — focusing on getting his foot down early and making contact out in front — got him there.

“I’m just trying to find something that gives me results,” Freeman said. “We’re at the time where we’re just trying to get hot for five weeks here. So kind of like I did in the World Series a couple years ago, I did the step-out move. That’s not sustainable over six months. I’m not trying to find something that’s sustainable.”

Though Roberts has been trying to find opportunities to rest Freeman, he saw promising signs Tuesday beyond the results.

“Just my eyes, just watching him move, I feel good about him going tomorrow,” Roberts said.

De Paula, Freeland and third baseman Max Muncy will be out of the lineup Wednesday, Roberts said.

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This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.

Jefferson Rojas had a memorable Triple-A debut.

The Mets' top prospect went 2-for-5, with three strikeouts and a home run in his first game with Syracuse.

In the first inning, Rojas hit a groundball single and came around to score on a Vidal Brujan double, but the big blast came in his second at-bat. With Syracuse already up 2-0 in the second inning, Rojas took Brian Keller deep with a runner on. Rojas smashed an 80 mph sweeper over the heart of the plate that went 361 feet. 

Jefferson Rojas is 2-for-2 in his AAA debut, including this homer! pic.twitter.com/RRhwzKJ0P8

— SNY Mets (@SNY_Mets) September 15, 2026

Rojas, acquired from the Cubs for Clay Holmes and Tyrone Taylor at the trade deadline, has made his mark in the Mets' system since the deal. 

In 29 games with Double-A Binghamton, Rojas slashed .280/.336/.593 with an OPS of .929 to go along with nine home runs and 29 RBI, nearly doubling both season totals in a third of the games from when he was in the Cubs system -- Rojas hit 15 homers and drove in 57 runs in 91 games with Knoxville while slashing .270/.339/.461.

With the minor league regular season set to end Sunday, Sept. 20, Rojas will get to experience Triple-A pitching for a few more days before he enters the offseason before playing in his first spring training with the Mets.

CINCINNATI –– There’s not much the Dodgers can do, manager Dave Roberts said Tuesday afternoon, to get their all-important rotation ready for the added workload that will come in the postseason.

Over the final couple weeks of the regular season, they have to just keep running their starters out there, and counting on them to round into elevated October form.

That’s what appeared to happen with Yoshinobu Yamamoto on Tuesday night at Great American Ball Park, in what was the right-hander’s most dominant performance of at least the last couple months.

In the Dodgers’ 4-0 win over the Cincinnati Reds, Yamamoto threw a one-hit masterpiece over seven scoreless innings, flashing the kind of ruthless efficiency that defined his heroics during last year’s playoffs.

After walking his first two batters in the first inning, he retired 21 of the 22 after with seven strikeouts and virtually no stress.

“After the first two hitters, it was vintage Yama,” Roberts said. “Just attacking, not trying to be too fine.”

The reigning World Series MVP hadn’t exactly been struggling lately, of course. Just last week, he held the Reds to one run over seven innings with 10 strikeouts back in Los Angeles.

But what Yamamoto did on Tuesday was different, keyed by quick and easy outs on soft and harmless contact.

It’s what he did as the ace of last year’s postseason staff, and what he will need to do again as the Dodgers go for a World Series three-peat this fall.

“I’d like to carry this,” Yamamoto said through an interpreter of his renewed stuff, “into October.”

The Dodgers are hoping they won’t have to ask as much out of Yamamoto this time around; that they need him to pitch back-to-back complete games (like he did in Game 2 of the NLCS and Game 2 of the World Series) or provide back-to-back nights of season-saving heroics (following up a victorious Game 6 start in the Fall Classic with a winning three-inning appearance out of the bullpen in Game 7). 

But in a postseason environment, it’s impossible to know what exactly will be required.

“You can’t just try to create that during the regular season because you want these guys as strong and healthy for the October run [as possible],” Roberts said pregame. “But it’s one of those things that, once we get to the postseason, all bets are off and everyone is going to do what they can to contribute.”

It would help, of course, if the Dodgers’ currently Shohei Ohtani-less offense can keep turning a corner, with Tuesday bringing more positive –– albeit subtle –– signs.

The biggest development: Freddie Freeman returned to the lineup amid his ongoing right knee injury, and finally snapped out of a 3-for-30 slump by collecting three singles in the first, fifth and seventh innings.

“Feels better today than he did yesterday,” Roberts said, after Freeman missed his third game in the last week on Monday, “which is a good thing.” 

The Dodgers’ scoring, meanwhile, came from elsewhere. 

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Hunter Feduccia laced an RBI single in the second off Reds starter Rhett Lowder, maintaining his unexpected status as the Dodgers’ best hitter against right-handed pitching since being re-acquired at the trade deadline (with a team-leading .292 average in such splits since the start of August).

Teoscar Hernández continued his late-season surge with a two-run homer in the third, giving him four home runs, eight extra-base hits, 18 RBIs and a .417 average over his last 14 games.

Even Alex Freeland chipped in with a solo blast in the seventh and a double in the ninth, helping him outshine fellow rookie Josue De Paula (who went 0-for-5 with his first two strikeouts of the season after getting bumped up to the leadoff spot).

That was all enough to help the team lower its magic number to clinch the National League West to one.

Still, when it comes to October, no position group will be more important than the Dodgers’ rotation.

That’s why, right now, outings like the one Yamamoto made on Tuesday, or Tarik Skubal spun the night before (also seven scoreless innings) are the most promising ways the Dodgers can ramp up toward the playoffs.

Once they get there, they’ll need their starters to be on.

Roster moves

The Arizona Diamondbacks made the following roster moves. The D-backs’ active roster is at 28 and the 40-man roster is at 40.

• Reported to the Major League roster: OF Jesús Sánchez (No. 18)
• Optioned to Triple-A Reno following last night’s game: OF Tommy Troy

The team’s efforts to improve against right-handed pitching go on. That’s why we saw Pavin Smith come up the other day, and now another left-handed bat joins them. Sánchez (I wonder how long it’ll be before I can’t be bothered with the acute over the a?) comes right into the starting line-up tonight, facing another right-handed starter. He bats seventh and plays DH. Arizona are a mediocre 53-58 in games where the opposition start a right-hander, and looks like they will be seeing a few more over the remaining eleven games, so ramping that up is going to be very helpful.

DH is another area where the team could use more production. I don’t know how much Sánchez will be able to move the needle, with less than two weeks to go. But currently the D-backs rank 27th by OPS at the position, at only .644. [Hey, still better than 1B, where they are 30th at .635, 46 points below anybody else. Although that is up 75 points from the mid-June figure] It’d be lower, except for the time Ketel Marte and Gabriel Moreno have spent at the position this year. They are the only occupants of it to have hit more than one home-run. It likely says a lot that we have had seventeen different players take bats as the Arizona DH.

Michael Soroka starts for the team tonight at Chase, and we’ll see if Zac Gallen follows him, flip-flopping their roles from Soroka’s last start. I imagine Michael will be on a similar pitch-count as Corbin Burnes was last night, somewhere around 75. Get him twice through the order, and then turn it over to Gallen for a bit? I think we would all feel more comfortable if the Diamondbacks had a healthy lead by the time that came to pass. Be nice if the Padres would lose too, but the Rockies are about as useful as a chocolate teapot in this situation. Just keep winning, D-backs…

The Lake Elsinore Storm, the San Diego Padres’ Single-A minor league affiliate, finished their season with a 66-65 record, 4.5 games behind the Ontario Tower Buzzers (LAD) in the South Division. After winning the first-half crown, the Storm floundered during the second half and finished with a 27-35 record in the last half of the year. 

The last week of their season ended on a high note with a series win versus the Inland Empire 66’ers. For the start of the division playoffs, the Storm went up against the Ontario Tower Buzzers for the South Division title. In a best-of-three series, the Storm captured the first two games, beating Ontario 10-9 on Sept. 8. Lake Elsinore out-hit Ontario while starter Jesus Castro pitched six innings of one run ball. Despite the bullpen relinquishing nine runs, the offense scored ten runs on twelve hits. 

LF Alex Conover and DH Nu’u Contrades, both 2026 draftees who joined the team in August, excelled for the Storm. 

After an off day, the Storm scored six runs on six hits while LHP Kruz Schoolcraft and 2026 No. 1 draft pick Coleman Borthwick combined to throw seven innings with only one run allowed. Schoolcraft allowed two hits and no runs, striking out eight in five innings, while Borthwick, promoted just for the playoffs and making his professional debut, pitched two innings with two hits and one run, striking out four. 

Taiwanese righty Lan-Hong Su also came in as a reliever, throwing two innings with no hits and three strikeouts. It was an overwhelming performance for three of the top four best-ranked pitchers in the system. Combined, they allowed four hits, and the three gave a glimpse of what the future could hold for the Padres.

On Sept. 13, the Storm took on the winners of the North Division of the California League for the Cal League Championship series. The San Jose Giants (SF) dominated their division with an 80-52 record, 11 games up on the next team (Fresno). 

The Storm had their only home playoff game of the championship series and took full advantage of their home-field advantage. It was never a contest, with Lake Elsinore scoring early and often while their starter, RHP Tyler Schmitt, pitched 4.1 innings, allowing four hits and no runs. 

Undrafted free agent RHP Jack Pineau finished the fifth with no hits allowed. Then LHP Adler Cecil pitched three innings, with two hits and no runs allowed. 

By the end of the third inning, Lake Elsinore had scored six runs, and they added six more before finishing with 12 runs on 13 hits while their pitchers allowed one run on eight hits. The game was closed out by another undrafted free agent, RHP Ben Stubbs, who allowed the only run on two hits. 

The Storm hurlers combined for nine strikeouts. The two UDFA pitchers were added to the Storm roster just for the playoffs. Both had been pitching in the Bridge League after signing in July.

The best-of-three series continues in San Jose today with a third game, if needed, on Wednesday.

El Paso Chihuahuas (58-86 record, last in PCL East)

El Paso lost their week-long series to Tacoma, two games to four. LHP Luis Gutierrez made his El Paso debut, throwing four innings with three hits, a run, and four strikeouts to two walks. After missing most of the season, Gutierrez is finishing strong but is a free agent after this year unless the organization re-signs him by Oct. 15.

Two Padres players were on rehab assignments with the Chihuahuas over the week. Miguel Andujar started off as the DH but then progressed to playing first base and left field. In his five games and 21 at-bats, Andujar has four doubles and an RBI while hitting .286/.286/.476 for El Paso.

RHP Jason Adam began his rehab on Sunday with one inning and 11 pitches. His fastball topped out at 93 mph, and he struck out one hitter without allowing a hit.

Infielder Rosman Verdugo was promoted to El Paso for the last two weeks of the season.

The Chihuahuas have one more week left in their season.

San Antonio Missions (59-79 record, last in the Texas League South)

In their final series of the season, the Missions lost all but the last game of their six-game set. RHP Carson Montgomery made his Double-A debut with San Antonio and was roughed up for 10 runs in 2.2 innings pitched with three walks and one strikeout. In his first season back after Tommy John surgery, Montgomery was inconsistent, with command issues plaguing his performances.

Outfielder Alex McCoy, 24, has hit at all levels in his pro career. An undrafted free agent out of Maryland, McCoy started the season with Fort Wayne and was promoted to San Antonio in the last month of the year. Combined over two levels, McCoy hit .278/.355/.467 with 31 doubles, a triple, and 19 home runs for 71 RBI. He also stole 24 bases in 33 attempts. His pattern in his two seasons in the Padres system has been consistent. There are some initial struggles when he begins a level, but he adjusts and starts hitting again. Although he has slumps, he adjusts again and comes back strong. 

There is significant swing-and-miss in his game; his 26% K rate is too high, with most of that chasing, but his power is significant. He registered  119.7 mph max Exit Velocity during the season.

As a side note, MadFriars.com posted an interview with McCoy, and he reported that he is actually 6-6 and 275 pounds. He is listed at 6-5, 260 pounds.

McCoy currently sits as the No. 26 prospect in the Padres system per MLB Pipeline. I would expect that to change going forward.

First baseman Romeo Sanabria had a puzzling year in his age 24 season. Promoted to El Paso from San Antonio for his improved hitting, Sanabria floundered in Triple-A. A hitting haven for almost everyone, Sanabria played in 21 games for the Chihuahuas and hit .200 with a .575 OPS. Sent back to the Missions, Sanabria picked up where he left off and finished the season hitting .295/.389/.442 in a much more difficult league to hit. Limited defensively to first base, Sanabria will need to hit for power to maintain his status as a prospect in the system. He hit 12 homers in the last two seasons and 64 RBI combined over the two levels this year.

AFL starts in October

Next week will be the final affiliate report for this year and the Arizona Fall League will get started on Oct. 3. Rosters will be forthcoming and the schedule is available on the website. All games are also streamed on the website.

Fans desperate to see the Mets play in the fall months can look into a trip to Arizona, where the club will be sending eight prospects looking to distinguish themselves.

Eight Mets minor leaguers will participate in the Arizona Fall League, which is played in October and November.and exists in part to allow prospects to further showcase themselves and in part for prospects to catch up on reps after suffering injuries.

The most familiar name is Bruno Agbayani, who is Benny’s son and was acquired in the A.J. Minter trade.

Agbayani, an infielder, played just three games with Low-A St. Lucie after the trade because ofdue to a shoulder injury.

Boston Baro, another interesting infield prospect who nearly had his whole 2026 wiped out due to a shoulder injury, and first baseman Cole Mathis are included.

Arguably the most intriguing Mets prospect in the AFL will be Calvin Ziegler, who was a 2021 second-round pick who has flashed excellent stuff — with 103 strikeouts in 67 career minor league innings — but has barely pitched because of repeated injuries, including 2024 Tommy John surgery.

The righty returned to the mound midseason this year and began to show something as a reliever as he allowed one run in his last 8 ²/₃ innings with High-A Brooklyn and Double-A Binghamton.

Also attending the AFL will be righty Ryan Lambert,, who received plenty of buzz as a flamethrowing reliever in Mets camp this spring but dealt with injuries this season, along with righties Irving Cota, Brendan Girton and Peyton Prescott.

In the 7-5, 11-inning lossTuesday’s to the Orioles, Carson Benge hit a solo home run in the third inning that was his 18th of the season and 40th extra-base hit.

He is the second Mets rookie (along with Gregg Jefferies in 1989) with at least 40 extra-base hits and at least 20 steals in a season.

Nate Lavender retired all five batters he faced and struck out four. The lefty has not been scored upon in 16 of his 17 appearances.

Francisco Lindor was honored before the game as the club’s nominee for the Roberto Clemente award for the fourth straight year.

Bolstering his case for the humanitarian award, Lindor launched Lindor’s Leaders, which is “a yearlong leadership development program for students in Bayside High School’s Sports Medicine Program,” the Mets said.

The Mets claimed infielder Christian Cairo from the Phillies and optioned him to Triple-A Syracuse.

The 25-year-old spent his season in Triple-A, where he posted a .676 OPS with four home runs and 25 steals in 128 games.

Fans desperate to see the Mets play in the fall months can look into a trip to Arizona, where the club will be sending prospects looking to distinguish themselves.

Eight Mets minor leaguers will participate in the Arizona Fall League, which is played in October and November and exists in part to allow prospects to further showcase themselves and in part for prospects to catch up on reps after suffering injuries.

Agbayani, an infielder, played just three games with Low-A St. Lucie after the trade because of a shoulder injury.

Boston Baro, another interesting infield prospect who nearly had his whole 2026 wiped out due to a shoulder injury, and first baseman Cole Mathis are included.

The righty returned to the mound midseason this year and began to show something as a reliever, allowing one run in his last 8 ²/₃ innings with High-A Brooklyn and Double-A Binghamton.

Also attending the AFL will be righty Ryan Lambert, who received plenty of buzz as a flamethrowing reliever in Mets camp this spring but dealt with injuries this season, along with righties Irving Cota, Brendan Girton and Peyton Prescott.

Francisco Lindor was honored before the game as the club’s nominee for the Roberto Clemente award for the fourth straight year.

Bolstering his case for the humanitarian award, Lindor launched Lindor’s Leaders, which is “a yearlong leadership development program for students in Bayside High School’s Sports Medicine Program,” the Mets said.

The Mets claimed infielder Christian Cairo from the Phillies and optioned him to Triple-A Syracuse.

The 25-year-old spent his season in Triple-A, where he posted a .676 OPS with four home runs and 25 steals in 128 games.

The legacy of Tommy Lasorda is expected to hit theaters in the near future, and it’s believed to have one of Hollywood’s finest playing the Hall of Fame Los Angeles Dodgers manager.

Robert De Niro is in talks to play Lasorda in the upcoming film “Tommy & Me,” according to Deadline,

Details have yet to emerge as to what approach the film will take in telling Lasorda’s story, but the script will be led by George Gallo, Cambron Clark and Reid Carolin. Skydance Sports is expected to help produce the movie that will highlight one of baseball’s most iconic figures.

Lasorda, known for his fiery spirit and larger-than-life personality, is one of the most iconic managers in Dodgers history, as he helped coach and manage the team from 1973 through 1996, leading them to two World Series titles in 1981 and 1988, and being crowned National League Manager of the Year in 1983 and 1988.

In 1997, the Dodgers retired his No. 2 jersey, the same year he was immortalized in the National Baseball Hall of Fame.

After his managing career came to an end, Lasorda became an impactful member of the Dodgers front office, serving as a vice president, senior vice president, and special advisor from 1998 to 2021, where he is credited with making a large impact, such as helping scout and sign Mike Piazza.

In 2021, the Dodgers announced that Lasorda had passed away at a hospital near his home in Fullerton.

Before working as a coach and in front offices, Lasorda’s start in baseball began in 1954 as a player with the Dodgers, when they were still located in Brooklyn.

His playing career didn’t last too long, as he spent his first two seasons with the Dodgers and was later sold to the Kansas City Athletics in 1956.

Lasorda spent the next four years in the Minor Leagues and would retire from playing following the 1960 season.

De Niro, who is known for being able to play characters that have a fiery passion like Lasorda, has been in many notable films during his acting career, including Taxi Driver, The Godfather Part II, and Goodfellas.

Shohei Ohtani has taken his first steps to returning to the Los Angeles Dodgers lineup.

Though he's not currently with the team for their three-game series in Cincinnati, Ohtani began his hitting progression in LA and "felt good" after hitting off a tee, manager Dave Roberts told reporters before the Dodgers played the Reds on Tuesday, Sept. 15.

"I don't know what's in store for tomorrow, but I know there's gonna be a consistent build up," Roberts told reporters. "Don't know when the time of return to play is, but today was positive. Hopefully we can keep building towards that."

It was the first time Ohtani swung a bat since landing on the 15-day injured list after nagging injuries in his left knee and right bicep have led to a prolonged slump at the plate for the back-to-back National League MVP. He's already ruled out the possibility of returning to the mound as a pitcher this season, opting instead to focus solely on being a hitter for the rest of 2026.

The soonest Ohtani could see a return to action would be the final series of the regular season against the San Francisco Giants starting on Sept. 25, and though Roberts was noncommittal on a firm timeline, he expressed hope that Ohtani could be back in the lineup at some point before the postseason.

"Whether it happens or not is to be determined," Roberts said. "But I do expect him to be back to play in some regular season games. Don't know how many, though."

Rookie Josue De Paula shows promise in Ohtani's absence

In the meantime, rookie Josue De Paula has thrived in his first crack at the big leagues. He's only hitting .182, but the No. 6 prospect in baseball has drawn five walks with zero strikeouts in his first five games for an on-base percentage of .438. His first major league hit came on a towering 416-foot home run to right field in Miami on Sunday.

Josue De Paula's first Major League hit is a home run! pic.twitter.com/cPIwjDPxjk

— MLB (@MLB) September 13, 2026

It's been a very small sample size, but he's been so effective that Roberts moved the 21-year-old from ninth in the order to the leadoff spot for Tuesday's game.

"I like the at-bats," Roberts said. "I like the at-bat quality. I understand it's a small sample, but that's kind of who he is as a hitter and for me, it'll be a good opportunity for him to get five at-bats tonight."

Though Roberts has emphasized that De Paula's on a "no promises" trial run, but he hasn't ruled out the possibility of his top prospect staying on after Ohtani returns and making the postseason roster as a lefty bat off the bench, or more.

"It's still very early as far as however many at-bats or plate appearances he's taken but in this small sample, it's been good. It's certainly a much different level of focus with the postseason, but baseball is still baseball," he said. "I hope he makes our decision hard."