Heaney looks sharp as reliever
sharp in a scoreless four-inning outing.
He got into trouble in his first inning, facing a basesloaded jam, but struck out Manny Machado to retire the side. From there, he retired nine of his final 10 batters to lower his ERA to 2.88 and also racked up six strikeouts to surpass 100 total punchouts on the season.
“I think probably with just how we’re gonna potentially shape things in the playoffs, I’m sure that was part of just getting acclimated,” Heaney said, adding that he’d be comfortable coming out of the bullpen come October if needed.
Vargas’ situation is far less clear.
The highly touted prospect hasn’t played much since being called up when rosters expanded at the start of September, collecting only 40 plate appearances in 12 games before Thursday.
He was only added to the lineup for the series finale after Trayce Thompson was scratched late because of a personal matter (Roberts said Thompson should be back with the team on Friday).
But in the second inning, Vargas put the Dodgers on the board with a sacrifice fly. Then in the sixth, moments after Freddie Freeman had tied the score with an RBI single, the 22-year-old Cuban native came to the plate with the bases loaded and two outs.
After falling behind Padres reliever Pierce Johnson 1-and-2, Vargas fouled off a fastball, took one low curveball, then got just enough of the barrel on another, lining a two-run single back up the middle to collect his second and third RBIs of the night, his most in a major league game this season.
“It was one of those atbats where I was really focused,” Vargas said through an interpreter. “Really knew what I needed to do.”
The same can’t be said for his path to a postseason roster spot.
While Vargas is still only batting .195 in 13 games with the Dodgers, he has become an increasingly attractive alternative amid September slumps from Joey Gallo (five for his last 40), Cody Bellinger (seven for his last 40) and Thompson (six for his last 40) in the outfield.
Utility infielder Hanser Alberto, who is three for his last 26, hasn’t run away with what would likely be the team’s final position player roster spot, either.
Roberts acknowledged that it could be difficult for Vargas to unseat one of the Dodgers’ more established big-leaguers come October, but also noted his bat-to-ball ability could prove valuable coming off the bench — a skill that has translated to a fourfor-10 mark with six RBIs when Vargas has batted with runners in scoring position.
While Vargas knows the opportunity is out of his hands, he conceded it’s been on his mind lately too.
“Of course,” he said. “I want to be there.”
For now, all he can do is offer his best audition.
Even in the final days of the regular season, plenty of important decisions for the Dodgers still abound.