Pérez latest hitter to bat leadoff as search continues
LOS ANGELES – Manager Craig Counsell’s search for a productive leadoff hitter took another turn Saturday night, though there were special circumstances.
Counsell gave utility player Hernán Pérez a start in center field and put him in the No. 1 spot in lineup, which has been troublesome all season due to the decline in production of Jonathan Villar. But Counsell explained the move had more to do with the Los Angeles pitching plans.
With original starter Alex Wood on the DL, the Dodgers gave a spot start to right-handed reliever Ross Stripling, with the plan of using several relievers to cover the nine innings. Counsell had been trying left-handed-hitting Eric Thames at leadoff but wanted more balance with right-handed-hitting Pérez because the Dodgers have four lefties in their pen.
“Today is a different day as far as how I think they’re going to use their pitching,” Counsell explained. “They’re pretty balanced in the bullpen. Part of it is to get our lineup a little more balanced throughout the game. There’s a pretty good chance these guys will face Stripling one time.
“I was going to play ‘HP’ today, so this is kind of the way it worked out. It’s probably a one-day thing.”
Whether Counsell goes back to Thames remains to be seen. In eight games in the leadoff spot, he was batting a mere .152 with a .586 OPS, compared to his overall OPS of .869.
Pérez said he learned he was batting leadoff when he arrived at the visiting clubhouse and bumped into Counsell in the hallway.
“He told me, ‘Don’t think I’m sick, but you’re batting leadoff.’ I just laughed,” Pérez said.
“I’ve never done it but I’ve asked before to lead off. I’m just going to try to do my best. I’m not going to try to do too much. I’m just going to try to have good at-bats, like I do always.”
The leadoff spot never was an issue last season with Villar having a superb year, getting on base (.369 OBP) and piling up steals (major league-best 62). But he has been mired in a season-long slump that eventually prompted the Brewers to trade for veteran second baseman Neil Walker a couple of weeks ago.
There was a monthlong period in the middle of the season when Eric Sogard replaced Villar at second base and in the leadoff spot, and went on an offensive tear. But Sogard suffered an ankle injury, missed considerable time and could not recover his stroke upon his return to action.
As a consequence, the Brewers have been among the worst teams in the majors in terms of production from the leadoff spot. They ranked 25th among the 20 clubs with a .239 batting average, 24th with a .312 OBP and 27th with a .683 OPS.
“We’ve scuffled in that spot this year, basically,” Counsell said. “Sogard probably has been the most successful at it (.364 OBP in 36 games).
“Johnny was so good there last year. Eric has had a good season, but it’s just at that spot (that it hasn’t gone well). I don’t know if we can explain anything from that (small sample).
“It’s an important spot in your lineup. It’s the guy that bats the most. It’s the guy hitting ahead of the hitters that are probably doing the most damage for you offensively. So, you’re leaning on that guy a lot.”
Quiet again: After scoring 14 runs while winning the last two games in Colorado at the start of the trip, the Brewers were feeling good about their offense. But, after losing two of three in San Francisco and the opener against the Dodgers while scoring a total of seven runs, the bats had gone quiet again.
“We just have to continue to compete in every single at-bat and every single pitch,” Counsell said. “That’s what we can control. Then you hope you get results.
“It’s going to take more to get to the playoffs. We’re chasing and we’re going to have to get hot. We’ve scored less in the second half, no doubt.
“It’s still not on one group because we can still pitch better and play defense better but I can safely say we’re going to have to score more runs, moving forward.”