Los Angeles Dodgers first baseman Freddie Freeman has been battling right knee pain, but the worst of it may be behind the team’s contact specialist.
Entering Tuesday’s game, Freeman was on a 3-for-30 cold streak and had missed three of the last six games because of his knee issue.
Things looked shaky for Freeman, who has built a reputation as one of baseball’s most consistent players.
However, he put together his best game in weeks, going 3-for-5 on singles, but showing the elite bat-to-ball skills that make him a candidate to bat around .300 year in, year out.
After the game, manager Dave Roberts noted that Freeman looked more like himself.
“It looked good,” Roberts said. “It looked more like Freddie.”
Freeman had asked Roberts before the game, jokingly, if he could play on Wednesday, a scheduled day off, if he got three hits.
As a result of Freeman’s performance, the manager is allowing Freeman to skip an off-day on Wednesday and play again, with the infielder eager to get the ball rolling.
“I feel like my faults are I try to hit the ball to the opposite field too much, and I let the ball get too deep,” he said.
“So today was [get the] foot down early, catch the ball out front a little bit, and it kind of worked. I wasn’t squaring the ball up in the game, but I’ll take those three hits and keep that work going tomorrow, and hopefully we’ll get hot.”
What does Freeman’s uptick mean for the Dodgers?
With the best rotation in baseball, the Dodgers are left scrounging around for offense any way that they can find it.
Teoscar Hernandez, Josue De Paula, and Mookie Betts have been the most consistent sources, with Max Muncy and Will Smith in the picture as well.
Still, the Dodgers need as many players in a spot as possible to deliver timely hits, and Freeman’s experience and skills make him a clear-cut candidate to step up.
To deliver results quickly, as he manages his knee and struggles, Freeman has made a mechanical change, getting out in front of the ball to catch it earlier on his bat.
The result may be less clean contact and hard hits, but more consistent contact, with the idea that it makes him valuable come the postseason.
“I’m not trying to find something that’s sustainable,” he said. “I’m trying to find something that works for four weeks.”
Freeman has the right approach to deliver just what the Dodgers need. The entire offense does not need to be excellent; simply being good enough will lead to a three-peat.
