Dodgers consider NLDS Game 3 lineup changes –– with Shohei Ohtani, Kiké Hernández included

ATLANTA –– The Dodgers don’t want to overreact to a two-game sample size.

But, with elimination all of a sudden just two games away, they don’t want to wait too long to make changes either.

That’s the dynamic manager Dave Roberts was grappling with on Monday, as the Dodgers gathered at Truist Park in Atlanta ahead of Game 3 of their National League Division Series against the Braves.

A daunting challenge awaits on Tuesday night, when the club will face Braves ace Chris Sale for the first time since he threw a complete-game shutout against them in August.

Thus, even though the team’s quest for a World Series three-peat just began, potential lineup changes were already under consideration.

And even superstar Shohei Ohtani might not be immune.

“I am considering [changes],” Roberts said. “I think that’s a very fair question.”

That didn’t mean Roberts was ready to commit to any significant alterations ahead of a pivotal Game 3, with the best-of-five series tied one game apiece.

He noted the danger of reading too far into small playoff sample sizes this early in the postseason.

Still, he said there were things he was “thinking through” and “possibly kind of some changes” that could be enacted on Tuesday.

One possibility: Inserting Miguel Rojas and/or Kiké Hernández into lineup, perhaps in place of Max Muncy and/or Tommy Edman, to give the Dodgers extra right-handed bats against a dominant left-hander in Sale. 

Another, more notable potential option: Moving Ohtani even further down the order from his current No. 2 spot, after he went just 2-for-8 in the first two games of the NLDS while continuing to battle right arm and left knee injuries.

“[We already moved] him from 1 to 2 –– but going further than that? I’m open to it,” Roberts said. “It’s something that, if I do, I would obviously have the conversation with Shohei to explain why.”

The explanation, of course, wouldn’t be too complicated.

In Ohtani’s currently diminished physical state, he has simply not been the same presence at the top of the order that the Dodgers have grown accustomed to from the four-time MVP.

“Like we’ve talked about, he’s not 100%,” Roberts said. 

But also, “I think there’s a little bit of [him also] trying to do too much,” Roberts added. “I think that’s a piece.”

Indeed, Ohtani has suffered from a futile combination so far in the playoffs, failing to either punish pitches over the plate or keep from chasing out of the strike zone. 

“It’s hard to have success when you’re out of the zone,” Roberts said. “So I think that’s the thing, then the question is: How do we get him [attacking pitches back] into it?”

A change of mindset could help, especially against a premium pitcher like Sale (who has held Ohtani to a 3-for-15 mark with five strikeouts and only one double in their career head-to-head matchups).

“Trying to chase slug tomorrow night might not be the right plan, given the starter,” Roberts said.

Instead, Roberts pointed to the opposite-field single Ohtani slapped past a shift for his lone hit in Sunday’s Game 2 loss.

“That at-bat yesterday, the block base hit the other way, that’s something that is production,” Roberts said. “I think that’s something where, against a guy like Chris Sale, it gives you a chance.”

The Dodgers, of course, would love to get more pop from Ohtani, who led the team with eight home runs during last year’s World Series trek. Roberts also knows the slugger “feels the responsibility” to provide such power, which might be contributing to his lack of plate discipline.

Thus, for now, taking the pressure off Ohtani’s shoulders by potentially hitting him lower in the lineup might also prove to be prudent.

“At the end of the day, every conversation I’ve had with him is whatever’s best for the team,” Roberts said. “And he’s all in on [that]. I know that undoubtedly.”

While Roberts will contemplate other changes beyond Ohtani’s spot in the order, there were a few ideas he outright struck down Monday night.

The big one: Removing Andy Pages from the batting order despite his 0-for-7 start in the playoffs –– one that has felt reminiscent of his historic struggles last October, and been further marred by a consequential ABS challenge he missed in Game 1.

While Roberts said he feels Pages has been “trying to do too much” –– downplaying any lingering effects from the fractured hand that sidelined the center fielder for most of September –– he also said he wanted to give the 25-year-old slugger more leash.

“I believe in him,” Roberts said. “And I feel that for us to win the World Series this year, we’re gonna need him to be an active part of our team.”

That was all part of the balance Roberts was trying to strike with his team’s season potentially hanging in the balance. It might still feel early for drastic changes. But one more loss, and the club’s three-peat bid will be on the brink.

“Our guys are our guys,” Roberts said. “Yeah, I can tweak a lineup. I can kind of insert, take out a player or two. But at the end of the day, we still have got to go out there and play and execute and take good at-bats.”