Manager Dave Roberts continued to give Michael Conforto his chances at the plate.
The former Giant was pegged to do what he’s done his entire career: hit with power. Instead, he’s struck out 41 times and hits a whopping .153, comfortably bottom of the barrel in the Dodgers lineup.
For Chris Taylor, starts are few and far between. The Dodgers have now played 42 games. Taylor has only played in 26 and started in six.
The super utilityman played a role in eight Dodgers postseasons, bursting onto the scene in the 2017 NL pennant-winning run. He became a fan favorite, his often monotone cadence differentiating himself from his teammates. But since signing his four-year, $60-million contract before the 2022 season, Taylor has been more of a non-factor than a factor at Dodger Stadium. He’s tallied just 1.7 WAR (according to Baseball Reference) since putting pen to paper.
On Tuesday, Conforto and Taylor were the bottom-of-the-order X-factors against southpaw Jeffrey Springs and the Athletics. Taylor and Conforto combined for four extra-base hits (of eight hits) after combining for eight entering the game. Conforto doubled three times, to exit velocities of 103.7 mph, 106.1 mph and 109.5 mph.
“I’m just impressed that he just kind of kept his head down,” Roberts said of Conforto. “Going through this thing that he was going through for the first five weeks of the season. I think he’s really starting to get some confidence now.”
Not that it mattered much during Tuesday’s 11-1 loss to the Athletics at Dodger Stadium.
“I thought this was as far as collectively as forgettable as an outing, a compilation of offense, team offense, as we’ve seen in quite some time,” Roberts said.
Shohei Ohtani, Mookie Betts and Freddie Freeman resembled much of what the bottom half has offered in 2025 — going 0-for-9 at the plate. Ohtani fouled out with a runner on second in the seventh. Betts grounded into a fielder’s choice and reached via an error on a should-have-been 6-3 putout. Freddie Freeman killed a third-inning rally by grounding into a 1-6-3 double play.
Combined with starting pitcher Landon Knack’s performance — failing to finish the fifth inning after giving up two, two-run home runs to Thousand Oaks high alumnus Jacob Wilson (career-high four RBIs) in his Dodger Stadium debut — the Dodgers (27-15) lost the first game of a nine-game home stand.
Knack, who may now be solidly in the rotation rather than making the treks back and forth to triple-A Oklahoma City after Roki Sasaki hit the injured list Tuesday with a right-shoulder impingement, struck out a career-high-tying eight batters and ended the night with five of the Athletics (22-20) runs charged to him.
“Obviously want to go as far into the game as possible, kind of save the pen a little bit,” Knack said. “You try to focus on some of the positives, take some of those from it, and then kind of sit back and see what was I not doing well, what I need to get better at, and as we move forward, just try to attack that this week.”
The 27-year-old right-hander has yet to pitch into the sixth inning in major-league action this year. With Sasaki joining lefty Blake Snell and righty Tyler Glasnow on the injured list — both pitchers met with Dr. Neal ElAttrache to garner feedback on next steps in recovery — it’ll make Clayton Kershaw’s return Saturday even more relevant.
Kershaw will make his season debut Saturday against the Angels, manager Dave Roberts said. Kershaw tossed five minor-league rehab starts, reaching six innings once during a May 6 outing for the Arizona Complex League Dodgers in Arizona. When Kershaw debuts, it’ll be his 18th season with the Dodgers, tying Bill Russell and Zack Wheat for the franchise record for seasons played with the team.
“It’s a big shot in the arm,” Roberts said of Kershaw pregame, before Sasaki went on the injured list.
The Dodgers may now be seeking further “shots in the arm” in the weeks ahead — but will need run support as they look to even up the series Wednesday.
Sasaki’s injury diagnosis
Roberts said postgame that Sasaki’s been shut down for the foreseeable future as the team treats his right-shoulder impingement.
Sasaki did not say anything to the coaching staff about discomfort until his start in Arizona, Roberts said, although Sasaki admitted to having been pitching through the issue for a few weeks.
“I think that our goal is to get him healthy, get him strong,” Roberts said, adding that there is no timeline for Sasaki’s return. “Make sure his delivery is sound for him to pitch for us. Now with the information we’ve learned, he hasn’t been as productive as he would’ve liked because he was compromised.”
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