Dodgers News: Puig Named National League Player Of The Month For May
For the second time in his career, Puig has been named the National League Player Of The Month; the recognition comes weeks after Puig was named the NL Player Of The Week. The Dodgers have continued to struggle with finding consistency this season and Puig has hit from different spots of the lineup, but the right fielder has remained the Dodgers’ most consistent player.
En route to tying a franchise record with 43 hits in the month of May, Puig hit .398 with eight home runs and 25 RBIs. While Puig was productive when swinging the bat, he also continued to show improved plate discipline and drew 17 walks in the month, which is a career-high.
Puig’s growth as a player has led to manager Don Mattingly singing his praises with the manger recently sharing his belief that Puig is the best right fielder in baseball. For much of this season Puig has hit second in the lineup, but his ability to drive runners in, coupled with Hanley Ramirez missing time with a calf soreness, has resulted in the right fielder batting third.
While it may have initially seemed like a temporary change with Ramirez out of the lineup, Mattingly said Puig is likely to remain in the three hole with Ramirez and Adrian Gonzalez hitting behind him. It was also announced Tuesday that Puig had jumped from fifth among outfielders in All-Star voting to first.
Along with having an impact on the game from the plate, Puig also had a pair of impressive catches during May. The first was a diving catch against the New York Mets and more recently, a catch before crashing into the wall off the right field line at Dodger Stadium.
As the Dodgers look to find their footing, Puig is 2-for-8 with a double through two June games.
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