A Plea To Don Mattingly For Sanity

Dodgers catchers this season rank dead last in the National League in batting average (.216) and on-base percentage (.269),  11th out of 16 teams in slugging percentage (.356), and are 15th in both OPS (.625) and adjusted OPS (78).

Rod Barajas and Dioner Navarro have combined for 252 of the 274 plate appearances at catcher for the Dodgers this season, so they are the main culprits in the lack of hitting by Dodger backstops this year. Navarro (seven) and Barajas (six) have also combined for 13 plate appearances as a pinch hitter this season.

Stop it, Don.

These are terrible hitters. Any type of argument that Barajas or Navarro are at least passable hitters must always be followed with "for a catcher," and even then that doesn't seem like the case now.

With the game on the line, Barajas and Navarro are precisely the type of hitters you would pinch hit for, rather than willingly send to the plate, as was the case Monday night when Barajas and Navarro struck out for the final two outs of the game, while Marcus Thames and Trent Oeltjen sat on the bench.

You have better options on the bench. Use them.