Coming off a season in which they finished one win shy of their first World Series since 1988, the Los Angeles Dodgers went into 2018 again facing lofty expectations. They are among the favorites at sports books to both win the National League pennant and Fall Classic.
That of course carries little weight, as a 162-game season is decided on the field, not paper. Los Angeles came out of the gate a bit sluggish, specifically at the plate, and suffered back-to-back 1-0 losses to the San Francisco Giants.
Further adding to their frustration, Joe Panik made MLB history with his solo home run in each game proving the difference. Moreover, Bruce Bochy became the first visiting manager to notch 100 career wins at Dodger Stadium.
But the Dodgers reversed their fortunes Saturday night, ending their scoring drought in the bottom of the first inning and cruising to a 5-0 victory. The win naturally led to a lighter mood in the clubhouse during postgame interviews.
So much so that it led to Kiké Hernandez pronouncing himself as the Dodgers’ leader when it comes to slugging, per Andy McCullough of the L.A. Times:
Enrique Hernandez: "As we all know, I'm the Captain of The Slug Club."
— Andy McCullough (@McCulloughTimes) April 1, 2018
While Hernandez might not be the power batter that comes to mind when evaluating the Dodgers’ roster, his double in the bottom of the first inning was the club’s first extra-base hit this season. Hernandez later added a sacrifice fly.
He’s coming off a strong showing in Spring Training that saw the noted lefty-masher succeed against same-side pitching. Hernandez believes more opportunities to face right-handers will lend to an increase in production.
He should get those at-bats, as Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said Hernandez will receive the bulk of starts at second base while Logan Forsythe is at third to fill in for Justin Turner.
