Dodgers’ Max Muncy going through defensive slump in first week
PHOENIX — The answer had less spin than some of the ground balls that Max Muncy has misplayed over the past week.
“So far, it hasn’t been great,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said when asked to assess Muncy’s defense at third base in the opening week of the season.
Muncy made two errors in his first five games, missing one game after taking a ground ball to the abdomen. A few plays went unmade, bouncing through Muncy for hits but not drawing an error.
“When things are going bad, they’re going bad,” Muncy said Thursday. “I’m in between on everything and getting some tricky hops and I’m not putting myself in a position to handle them.”
Emphasizing that it was an explanation and not an excuse, Roberts said the turf at Dodger Stadium has been “different than we’re used to” because of the unusual weather this winter.
“So the hops are playing differently,” Roberts said. “It’s coming off a little more different than we’re used to. No excuse. And Max is well aware of that. But he’s a good defender. He’s just in a little funk right now.”
Muncy agreed with Roberts that the turf has been a factor in his defensive struggles.
“I’m not going to make any excuses, but Jordan (Lorenz), our groundskeeper, did say they planted an entire new field and because of the cold and the rainy weather, it hasn’t had a chance to set in yet,” Muncy said. “So there have been a couple where balls have hit seams in the grass and bounced one way or another, but from the grass to third is different than it’s been in years past.
“Once we get some warm weather, that will go away. Like I said, (there have been) some tricky hops but I’m not putting myself in a position to handle those hops.”
Before last season, Muncy had played first and second base far more often than third base. But he started 74 games there in 2022 and has said he feels “really good over there” now. Just as hitters go through slumps, you can also go through defensive slumps, Muncy said, and “hopefully” that’s all this is.
“I feel I’m a very good defender over there, but like I said, when things go bad, they go bad,” he said. “You get a couple bad hops, put yourself in a couple bad positions. You get a ball seven inches off the plate called a strike. It’s just one of those things that when things go bad, they go bad. That’s the beauty of baseball.
“But there’s gonna come a time where things go good and I’ll have a candy hop every single play over there and hopefully I make every single one of them. … You have to weather the storm and keep going out there every day and working hard and as long as you show your teammates that you’re trying to get better and you’re focused and prepared and doing the right things, they’re going to trust you in the end.”
DOS MIGUELS
Miguel Vargas (thumb) and Miguel Rojas (groin) were out of the starting lineup for a second consecutive game Thursday but Vargas at least seems on the verge of returning.
“Today I feel a lot better,” Vargas said. “I was throwing and hitting already and I feel good. I feel better and I’ll be able to pinch-hit today.”
Roberts said his expectation is that Vargas will return to the lineup Friday.
Rojas, on the other hand, is “a little more tricky,” Roberts said.
“It’s just the position he’s playing and that part of the body, the groin, it’s so dynamic. One move can set you back weeks. We just can’t afford that,” Roberts said.
Rojas went through a full workout before Thursday’s game, testing his injury with everything from batting practice to taking ground balls and turning double plays.
“It’s the movements,” said Rojas, who has not played since Sunday. “I have to put it through everything I would do in a game and then we’ll see.”
Roberts also acknowledged that the Dodgers will be more cautious with Rojas because of a lack of infield depth. With Rojas and Vargas out, Chris Taylor and Mookie Betts have moved from the outfield to the infield.
CAT WALK
Right-hander Tony Gonsolin threw to hitters at Camelback Ranch on Wednesday, his first time facing hitters since twisting his left ankle a month ago. Roberts’ review was tepid.
“It was okay,” he said. “He got through it … which was the most important thing.
“I don’t think he threw his best. But that’s to be expected given it’s the first time he faced hitters.”
Gonsolin is expected to throw a bullpen session this weekend before the Dodgers continue this road trip in San Francisco. The right-hander will likely throw to hitters again at least once before starting a minor-league injury rehabilitation assignment expected to last multiple starts.
UP NEXT
Dodgers (LHP Clayton Kershaw, 1-0, 1.50 ERA) at Diamondbacks (Madison Bumgarner (0-1, 11.25 ERA), Friday, 6:40 p.m., SportsNet LA, 570 AM