Dodgers: Tony La Russa Defends Decison to Face Max Muncy

It’s not every day that you see a decision made by a manager that’s so questionable that players on the other team start shaking their heads. But that’s exactly what happened with the Dodgers and White Sox on Thursday afternoon, and Freddie Freeman couldn’t help but to wonder what the heck was going on. 

The Dodgers’ first baseman shook his head in disbelief as the White Sox opted to walk Trea Turner with 2 strikes on him. But after the ball skipped away in the dirt, Freddie was able to get into scoring position. Tony La Russa decided he would rather take his chances with Max Muncy.

After the game, the Sox manager went on to explain why he chose to walk the Dodgers shortstop and face Muncy Explain might be a generous word here, it was more like he was fighting back with reporters who questioned the call. 

“Is there some question about whether that was a good move or not? …Is that really a question? Because it was 1-2? Turner with a strike left is something you avoid if you can. …that wasn’t a tough call.”

Obviously, it didn’t work out for Tony. Muncy took a pitch to leftfield and cleared the bases for the Dodgers. That ended up being the runs they needed as Chicago attempted to mount a late comeback against Los Angeles’ bullpen. 

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But there is some truth to it. Turner does hit .259 against lefties with 2 strikes on him. Muncy hits .125 overall against southpaws, so La Russa isn’t entirely wrong here. But still, you take your chances with 1 pitch over restarting a count. Especially when you’re already down. Luckily, it worked out great for the Dodgers. 

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