Michael

Conforto

A day after hitting a home run in San Francisco, Conforto came up big against the Giants, knocking three base hits on the day and scoring both runs for the Dodgers in their tight 2-1 victory. The 32-year-old outfielder is slashing .185/.299/.323 with eight homers, 36 runs scored, and 23 RBI over 304 plate appearances.

Ward is 27 years old, so he’s not an up-and-coming prospect, but he has been crushing the ball in Triple-A this season, hitting .303/.395/.574 with 19 home runs and 11 steals in 72 games. He also hit 33 home runs and stole 11 bases in 120 games at Triple-A last year. His exit velocities have always been strong, but this year he’s taken more of a line drive approach and cut his swing rate by 11 percent, which has helped him make far more contact. With Michael Confort hitting just .176/.302/.308 in 262 plate appearances this year, it might be time for the Dodgers to see if Ward could be a better option.

Conforto doubled in the third inning, then gave the Dodgers the lead with a three-run blast off Germán Márquez in the fourth. It was just the second home run this month for Conforto and his fifth of the season as he’s struggled at the plate, hitting .171/.298/.290 with 28 runs scored across 258 plate appearances.

It may seem a bit surprising to have Kim in center field with Tommy Edman at second base, but the decision appears directly related to keeping the versatile veteran’s ankle healthy with less wear and tear. The 26-year-old rookie enters the lineup for the first time in three games with Michael Conforto taking a seat against Padres righty Stephen Kolek.

It appears to be a routine off day for Hernández with Andy Pages and Michael Conforto in the outfield corners for Los Angeles to face Cardinals righty Erick Fedde at Busch Stadium. The 32-year-old veteran slugger has been ice-cold at the dish of late, hitting .074 (2-for-27) with one RBI and 11 strikeouts over his last seven games.

Conforto hit his second homer on Apr. 5, finishing that game with an 1.112 OPS. Since that date, however, he’d hit .133/.279/.172 with no homers and just one RBI in 154 plate appearances over 41 games. The Dodgers have remained patient with him. Perhaps these next few weeks will tell us if it’s going to pay off or not.

It’s the first time in his career that Conforto has doubled three times. There were no soft ones tonight, either, as his hits left the bat at 106.1, 103.7 and 109.5 mph. As much as he’s struggled this season, it seems like a good sign, especially coming on a night that no one else in the Dodgers lineup had much luck.

Conforto reached on a one-out single off of Colin Rea in the second inning and came around to score the game’s first run on a two-out RBI single off the bat of Enrique Hernández. He then punched a single into center to lead off the sixth inning and scored the game-tying run on a sacrifice fly by Max Muncy. The 32-year-old outfielder is off to a slow start in his first season with the Dodgers, slashing just .224/.345/.429 with two long balls and five RBI.

Conforto left the yard in the sixth inning with a solo blast off Aaron Nola. It was the second home run of the season for the 32-year-old outfielder and he’s hit safely now in seven of his eight starts while six of his eight hits have gone for extra bases.

Michael Conforto and Teoscar Hernández also went deep in the one-sided affair as Dodgers starter Justin Wrobleski and seven relievers combined to shut down the Giants during Saturday’s exhibition opener at the Tokyo Dome. There are some lingering concerns that Ohtani won’t be as aggressive on the basepaths this season following offseason shoulder surgery, but he offers a realistic first-round floor for fantasy purposes, purely as a run-producing slugger in a loaded Los Angeles lineup, even if he’s barely running at all.