BoSox Injection
Fansided

Red Sox vs Dodgers: Five key factors to watch in this World Series

By Sean Penney

BOSTON, MA - APRIL 04: The World Series trophy sits among the championship rings prior to the Opening Day game between the Boston Red Sox and the Milwaukee Brewers at Fenway Park on April 4, 2014 in Boston, Massachusetts. (Photo by Jared Wickerham/Getty Images)
BOSTON, MA - APRIL 04: The World Series trophy sits among the championship rings prior to the Opening Day game between the Boston Red Sox and the Milwaukee Brewers at Fenway Park on April 4, 2014 in Boston, Massachusetts. (Photo by Jared Wickerham/Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
2 of 6
Next
BOSTON, MA – SEPTEMBER 29: Andrew Benintendi #16 of the Boston Red Sox looks on after striking out in the eighth inning of a game against the Houston Astros at Fenway Park on September 29, 2017 in Boston, Massachusetts. (Photo by Adam Glanzman/Getty Images)
BOSTON, MA – SEPTEMBER 29: Andrew Benintendi #16 of the Boston Red Sox looks on after striking out in the eighth inning of a game against the Houston Astros at Fenway Park on September 29, 2017 in Boston, Massachusetts. (Photo by Adam Glanzman/Getty Images) /

Struggle with southpaws

The Red Sox and Dodgers have two of the most prolific offenses in baseball, leading their respective leagues in runs scored. If there is a weakness with either lineup, it’s against left-handed pitching.

The Red Sox tied for 12th in the majors with a .250 batting average against lefties and were 18th with a .719 OPS. They saw some improvement in this area following the mid-season acquisition of lefty masher Steve Pearce but their regular lineup will still contain at least a few left-handed bats who struggle against southpaws.

Andrew Benintendi (.247), Mitch Moreland (.242), Rafael Devers (.229), Jackie Bradley Jr (.185), and Sandy Leon (.153) were all liabilities at the plate against lefties this season. Even some of their right-handed hitters surprisingly performed worse against lefties, including Xander Bogaerts (.269) and Ian Kinsler (.167). Boston can’t sit all of these guys.

That could be a problem against a Dodgers rotation that includes Clayton Kershaw, Hyun-Jin Ryu, and Rich Hill. Los Angeles has also added left-handed reliever Scott Alexander to their roster for this series. He has held left-handed hitters to a .172 average and .460 OPS this season, giving the Dodgers a weapon to strategically deploy out of the bullpen.

The Dodgers lineup isn’t any better against lefties. They were 20th in the majors with a .240 average and 13th with a .733 OPS. They upgraded mid-season by adding David Freese, who posted a .464/.545/.786 line in 28 at-bats against lefties since joining the Dodgers.

Los Angeles has several key bats who struggles against lefties though, including Max Muncy (.255), Chris Taylor (.232), Cody Bellinger (.226), Yasmani Grandal (.206), and Joc Pederson (.170). The Dodgers brought in Brian Dozier to help but he’s been a disaster since moving to LA.

A lineup that struggles against lefties will have an uphill battle on the road against Chris Sale and David Price in the first two games of the World Series. Boston surprisingly added Drew Pomeranz to their roster to give them another lefty to deploy against this lineup. As disastrous as his season went, Pomeranz is at least serviceable against left-handed hitters. Eduardo Rodriguez hasn’t pitched well this postseason but he could be a key cog in this bullpen given the struggles of the Dodgers against lefties.

Home/Red Sox News