Los Angeles Dodgers outfielder Joc Pederson has endured an uneven career that even saw him get briefly demoted to the Minors in 2017.
Pederson’s most well-known flaw is his struggles against left-handed pitching, which has resulted in the Dodgers’ decision to platoon him instead of making him a full-time starter. Now in his fifth season, Pederson owns a .178/.260/.309 career slash line against southpaws.
He hits right-handed pitchers well enough to get the lion’s share of playing time against them, but regularly sits against lefties. Pederson nonetheless has come a long way since his 2017 struggles that sent him to Triple-A Oklahoma City less than two years ago.
As the Dodgers’ leadoff hitter against right-handers, he is thriving with a 1.078 on-base plus slugging percentage thus far in the 2019. His 10 home runs are third-most in the National League, trailing only Cody Bellinger and Christian Yellich.
Furthermore, Pederson appears to have made peace with his status as a platoon player after initially resisting it, per Bill Plunkett of the Southern California News Group:
“I used to try to fight it when I was younger,” he says. “It just made me frustrated and I wasn’t even able to succeed against righties and you get sent down to the minor leagues. It comes down to producing when you get called on. I don’t know when you get called on but you’ve got to be able to produce and be in a good mindset. It’s a mental grind.”
Pederson has come a long way from the rookie center fielder who took the league by storm in the first half of 2015. Since then, he has been bumped from his position in more ways than one and does not seem interested in sugar-coating how hard that process was for him.
However, Pederson seems to be acing the mental challenges and, barring injury, will remain an important part of the Dodgers’ lineup throughout 2019. All the while awaiting an opportunity to validate his belief in being able to hit left-handed pitching.
