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LOS ANGELES — Andrew Toles comes into Monday night’s game against the Giants with home runs in his last two games, part of an early-season power surge for the outfielder.
His three-run shot against the Phillies on Sunday provided the Dodgers a nice cushion, enabling them to finish off their first series sweep of the year.
Starting lineups
| Pos | Giants | Pos | Dodgers |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pos | Giants | Pos | Dodgers |
| LF | Hernandez | CF | Toles (L) |
| 3B | Arroyo | SS | Seager (L) |
| RF | Pence | 3B | Turner |
| C | Posey | C | Grandal (S) |
| 1B | Morse | 1B | Gonzalez (L) |
| SS | Nuñez | LF | Bellinger (L) |
| 2B | Panik (L) | RF | Puig |
| CF | Stubbs | 2B | Utley (L) |
| P | Cueto | P | Kershaw (L) |
Toles is tied for the club lead with five home runs, half of his seasonal total last year between the majors and minors, which was a career high. Toles hit those 10 home runs in 2016 — three in the majors, seven in the minors — in 464 plate appearances. This year, he has hit five homers in 76 PA.
“Last year, I was surprised. This year, not so much,” manager Dave Roberts said. “Andrew is continuing to grow as a major league player, and he’s only getting better. That power is in there. He’s a strong kid, and when he puts the head to it, it goes a long way.”
Last week in San Francisco against the Giants, Toles was 0-for-11 before his final at-bat, an RBI single as part of the Dodgers’ four-run 10th inning on getaway day.
That started a four-game winning streak for the Dodgers, and a four-game hitting streak for Toles, who is 6-for-15 (.400) with six runs and five RBI during that stretch. Toles has also scored in four straight games, tied for the longest streak on the team this season.
Toles on Monday makes his fifth start of the season in center field, against right-hander Johnny Cueto, with Cody Bellinger in left field. Toles is batting leadoff for the 12th time in 15 starts this season, where he has hit all five of his home runs.