Dodgers’ Yasmani Grandal might undergo shoulder surgery next week
Dodgers catcher Yasmani Grandal (9) congratulates first baseman Adrian Gonzalez after he scored against the Mets in the first inning of Game 5.
Dodgers catcher Yasmani Grandal, who has played for much of the second half of the season with an injured left shoulder, said he could have surgery as early as next week.
“We are basically going to look it over,” Grandal said. “We’re doing pre-op on Tuesday and see how that goes. If the doc thinks we need to operate, then we’ll do that Wednesday.”
Grandal visibly cringed after a swing in Game 3, but he started at catcher in Game 5. He was hitless in two at-bats, both strikeouts, and walked once. He took just one swing, a foul tip that was caught for strike three.
Grandal, an All-Star this season, was not the same offensive player after the injury. He batted .282 with 14 home runs in 69 games to open the season. In the second half, he batted .162 with two home runs in 46 games.
“It was very frustrating, obviously, knowing the capability that I have to help this team out,” Grandal said. “The first half was the first half, but I was really looking forward to the second half just because I felt like I could’ve definitely helped this team out just cruise by and get to that one main goal which is the World Series.”
Grandal said the second half helped him grow as a catcher, despite the offensive swoon.
“I think I grew up a lot,” Grandal said. “Looking at the numbers, yeah the numbers are pretty ugly offensively, but defensively, I think I made a lot of strides.”
Starting pitcher Zack Greinke’s comfort was the primary motivation for reinserting Grandal into the lineup Thursday. “Him and Zack have worked really good,” Manager Don Mattingly said. “That’s probably our main reasoning right there.”
Grandal was replaced as a hitter by Carl Crawford in the eighth inning, and A.J. Ellis entered as catcher. Ellis struck out in the ninth inning in his only at-bat, ending his franchise-record postseason hitting streak at 12 games.
Old coach, new experience
Mets Manager Terry Collins had managed 1,688 major league games without guiding a team in a playoff game before this series, and he was understandably giddy after the game as he accepted the congratulations of Mets fans on the field level by slapping hands and exchanging hugs.
“We got some young guys and some veteran guys, and they mixed together and it’s been a blast,” said Collins, a former Angels manager.
As far as his contribution, he was modest. “The game is played by the players,” he said. “… I just try to stay out of the way best I can.”
Channeling ‘Bulldog’
The Dodgers came into the game with a 4-0 record in winner-take-all postseason games since coming to Los Angeles. Their last win was in Game 7 of the 1988 NL championship series, and the pitcher they turned to in that situation was at Dodger Stadium on Thursday night.
Orel Hershiser, then the ace of the pitching staff, is now a SportsNetLA broadcaster.
Hershiser’s opponent 27 years ago? The Mets.
The result? A 6-0 Dodgers victory.
Ace in the hole?
Mattingly acknowledged management had spoken to Clayton Kershaw about possibly pitching in relief with only one day off, but wouldn’t divulge what was said.
Kershaw pitched Game 1 for the Dodgers and returned to go seven innings on short rest in a Game 4 victory Tuesday.
“Obviously, the hesitation is health,” Mattingly said. “… I think that’s always your main concern with guys, health and what’s right and what’s fair. Even though the moment is huge, what is right?”
Short hops
Justin Turner had a Dodgers franchise record six doubles the series, and his 10 hits fell one shy of the club postseason-series record of 11 shared by Maury Wills, Ron Fairly and Bill Russell. … Chase Utley made his first appearance since his slide broke the leg of Mets shortstop Ruben Tejada and fueled a Dodgers comeback in Game 2. He flied to right leading off the ninth as a pinch hitter. … After batting .337 with a .425 on-base percentage in his first few weeks as a major leaguer, Dodgers shortstop Corey Seager went cold in the playoffs. He was three-for-16 with eight strikeouts. … The Dodgers were 0 for their last 11 with runners in scoring position. … Mets closer Jeurys Familia recorded the first six-out save of his career. He faced 16 batters in the series and retired them all. … The Mets hit .206 in the series and struck out 46 times in 126 at-bats. The Dodgers batted .248, but the NL’s top home-run-hitting team in the regular season hit only two. The Mets had six.
Times staff writer Mike Hiserman contributed to this report.
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