As Andy Pages surges, Dodgers waiting for Michael Conforto to contribute

LOS ANGELES — The Dodgers’ offense has been trying to operate with the parking brake on over the first month of the season.

The primary force dragging the production down has been the bottom half of the lineup where veterans Michael Conforto and Max Muncy, in particular, have failed to contribute much.

Conforto was not in the lineup against Pittsburgh Pirates left-hander Bailey Falter on Sunday afternoon. The left fielder started the season 5 for 17 (.294) with four doubles. Over the next 20 games, though, he hit .148 (9 for 61) with 22 strikeouts.

“I think there’s a lot of indecision,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said. “A little too careful. Just kind of not being convicted in his hitting zone and what he wants to do in an at-bat. I thought yesterday he hit a ball well to left field. I thought he hit a back side changeup, hard grounder to (Pirates third baseman Ke’Bryan Hayes). I thought that was a good at-bat.

“But I think for me it’s just wanting to have, once he gets in there, have clarity and just kind of be free and easy. I think sometimes it gets a little foggy with guys when they’re scuffling a little bit.”

Roberts said he saw some of the same things with Andy Pages as he struggled through the opening weeks of the season. Pages was hitting .137 two weeks ago but went into Sunday’s game with 12 hits in his previous 27 at-bats, including three doubles and two home runs. He singled in his first two at-bats Sunday as well, breathing life into the bottom half of the lineup.

The difference for Pages has been “1,000 percent” a mental adjustment, not any swing changes, Roberts said.

“I think that a big part of individual success is knowing who you are,” Roberts said. “And some people are mechanical-based, and some people – are sort of – have an approach, have an idea what the pitcher is trying to do, and then go out there and be a hitter. And that I think, in my opinion, what works best for Andy (is to be) not too concerned about where his hands are at, where his stride is at, all that stuff.”

SWING DADDY

Shohei Ohtani took some time to find his swing as a father. After missing two games for the birth of his first child, Ohtani returned to action and had just two hits in his next 16 at-bats. He broke out with three hits, all for extra bases (two doubles and a triple), in Saturday night’s game and had a walk and a double in his first two trips to the plate on Sunday.

Roberts said he saw some “overaggressiveness” in Ohtani’s initial at-bats after returning, some of which had surfaced before his paternity leave. Roberts said the 2-for-16 slump was probably a combination of the disruption of leaving the team, the life change of a first child and the slight funk he was already in at the plate.

“I think, if I recall, he wasn’t lighting the world on fire right before,” Roberts said. “And then you take a couple days where you’re just being a husband and a father. So the timing, out of sync, makes sense. It takes time and hopefully he’s turned a corner.”

KERSHAW TWO

Left-hander Clayton Kershaw is scheduled to continue his minor-league injury-rehabilitation assignment with Triple-A Oklahoma City by making two starts in the next week – Tuesday and Sunday (on four days of rest).

Kershaw will try to stretch out to five innings or 75 pitches on Tuesday.

Recovering from foot and knee surgeries last November, Kershaw has made two rehab starts, one with OKC and the other with Double-A Tulsa. He pitched three scoreless innings for OKC then allowed one run in three innings for Tulsa.

Kershaw is on the 60-day injured list and not eligible to be activated until mid-May.

ALSO

The Dodgers signed former major-league utilityman Nick Senzel to a minor-league contract and assigned him to OKC. Senzel, 29, was the second overall pick in the 2016 MLB Draft and has played for the Cincinnati Reds, Washington Nationals and Chicago White Sox over the past six seasons. He was playing in the Mexican League this year and batted .591 in 26 games before signing with the Dodgers.

UP NEXT

Marlins (RHP Edward Cabrera, 0-1, 6.14 ERA) at Dodgers (RHP Dustin May, 1-1,3.68 ERA), Monday, 7:10 p.m., SportsNet LA, 570 AM