Dodgers sit veteran slugger in surprise move amid recent slump: ‘Not great’

ATLANTA –– It wasn’t officially a benching.

But by leaving Teoscar Hernández out of the starting lineup on Tuesday, the Dodgers were hoping to prompt a change.

In the team’s series-opener against the Atlanta Braves, Hernández’s absence was conspicuous. The club was coming off a day off on Monday. And Hernández’s replacement in left field, Alex Call, was drawn in for a less favorable right-on-right matchup against Braves starter Bryce Elder.

However, Hernández’s struggles of late had warranted action.

Over his last 18 games, the veteran slugger had hit just .172 (10-for-58) with no home runs, 22 strikeouts and only two walks. His .441 OPS in that span ranked third-worst in the National League. And when asked about the quality of his at-bats on Tuesday, manager Dave Roberts didn’t mince his words.

“Not great,” he said bluntly.

Granted, Roberts made sure to describe Tuesday’s lineup decision as “just a day off for Teo.” He said the 33-year-old would be back in the lineup for the remaining five games on this Atlanta-Detroit road trip.

“He’s been grinding,” Roberts said. “I figure give him a couple days and then he’ll be in there.”

In the meantime, though, the Dodgers are hoping Hernández can use the extra time to find an answer to his issues at the plate.

“There’s a little mechanics part of it, which is leading to a lot of swing-and-miss, which leads to frustration,” Roberts said. “[He] worked real hard today with the hitting guys. They said they’ve seen some things in the swing that could help. So I’m encouraged.”

There hasn’t been much to be encouraged with in Hernández’s play since he returned from a hamstring strain two months ago.

Before that injury, the 33-year-old was hitting .276 with seven home runs, 31 RBIs and a .785 OPS in his first 51 games.

Since then, his numbers have plummeted across the board: .206 average, four home runs, 13 RBIs and a .588 OPS in 45 games.

Hernández has also particularly struggled against right-handed pitching this year, with a .236 average and .662 OPS (compared to a .267 average and .783 OPS against lefties). That’s the kind of trend that, come the stretch run of the year, could prompt the Dodgers to look for other potential options in left field, at least to complement Hernández (they do have left-handed-hitting James Tibbs III in triple-A, where he is continuing to hit over .300 with 27 home runs and 94 RBIs).

For now, of course, the Dodgers aren’t close to making any such drastic move.

They’re still cognizant of Hernández’s postseason track record (he had eight home runs and 25 RBIs in 33 games during their back-to-back World Series runs the last two years). They still believe in his ability to improve the quality of his at-bats and hold his own against right-handed pitching.

At the same time, though, their patience won’t last forever. And while Tuesday might not have been a benching, it at least offered a reminder of his need to finally rebound.

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