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The Dodgers’ starting lineup against the Brewers for Game 2 of their wild card series on Thursday night is mostly the same as their lineup from Game 1, with one change.
Will Smith is the designated hitter for the Dodgers, with Austin Barnes catching Clayton Kershaw. a It’s the fourth time this season Smith is the DH, after hitting .289/.401/.579 with eight home runs in his 37 games this season.
Game 2 lineups
| Pos | Brewers | Pos | Dodgers |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pos | Brewers | Pos | Dodgers |
| CF | García | RF | Betts |
| LF | Yelich (L) | SS | Seager (L) |
| 1B | Gyorko | 3B | Turner |
| DH | Healy | 1B | Muncy |
| SS | Arcia | DH | Smith |
| 2B | Hiura | CF | Bellinger (L) |
| RF | Taylor | 2B | Taylor |
| 3B | Urías | LF | Pollock |
| C | Nottingham | C | Barnes |
A.J. Pollock gets the start in left field against the right-hander, which isn’t terribly surprising since he started 31 of 42 games against righties in the regular season. But it does relegate Joc Pederson, who started 36 times against right-handers, to bench duty, despite two career home runs among his four hits in five at-bats against Milwaukee starter Brandon Woodruff.
“With Woodruff having an elite fastball at the top of the zone, I just haven’t seen Joc get to that and handle it this year,” Roberts said Thursday.
The top six hitters in Game 2’s lineup are the same as Game 1, including the dynamic duo of Mookie Betts and Corey Seager batting first and second. With those two in those spots in the order this season, the Dodgers are 28-8 while averaging 6.23 runs per game. Betts and Seager either scored or drove in all four Dodgers runs on Wednesday night.
Christian Yelich, who bats second in Game 2 after hitting leadoff for the Brewers in Game 1, is 9-for-22 with two home runs, a double, and four walks against Kershaw in his career (.409/.500/.727).
The Brewers have eight right-handed batters in their lineup, with only Yelich from the left side against Kershaw. a Ryan Braun, who left Game 1 with back tightness, is not one of those right-handers. He isn’t starting in Game 2, potentially ruining our MVP fun fact from earlier.
Ryon Healy, who played four games for the Brewers this season and last started on August 5, is Milwaukee’s designated hitter on Thursday, batting cleanup. He had two singles in three at-bats in his only previous meeting with Kershaw, in 2018.