Dodgers' Dave Roberts Reacts to James Outman's First Home Run: 'He Needed It'

Maren Angus-Coombs | Apr 9, 2024

Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

The Los Angeles Dodgers road trip in Chicago and Minnesota has brought temperatures in the 40s and James Outman's bat has been just as cold through the first couple of weeks this season.

However, Outman started to heat up on Monday evening against the Twins.

With the score tied at 2-2 in the seventh inning, Outman got a hanging full-count slider from Twins reliever Jay Jackson, sent a towering fly ball into the right field seat to give the Dodgers a 4-2 and proved to be the game-winning home run.

James Outman delivers for the Dodgers with a home run in the 7th inning!

🎥: @SportsNetLA pic.twitter.com/yTr6w4dPhK

— Dodgers Nation (@DodgersNation) April 9, 2024

“It felt good to see a ball land,” Outman said. “It’s still pretty early in the season, so it feels a little early to freak out. But yeah, it’s a start in the right direction, for sure.”

Outman's struggles forced Dodgers manager Dave Roberts to keep him out of the starting lineup against left-handed pitchers on Saturday and Sunday in Chicago, raising questions about potentially platooning the centerfielder. But, Roberts said he just wanted to give Outman time to work on his swing.

Before Monday's game, Outman was 4-for-32 with 13 strikeouts and a .139 batting average. He finished the night going 1-for-4 with two strikeouts but increased his average to .158 with the dinger.

“He needed it,” said Roberts. “He’s in the middle of it right now. He’s grinding. He took a couple of borderline pitches that at-bat and got to a 3–2 count. And then Jackson just left a slider middle-middle, and he put a good swing on it. So hopefully that’s a sign of more things to come.”

He experience similar cold spells during his rookie campaign last season and learned some valuable lessons that he has brought with him this year.

“It’s never as bad as you think it is. And it’s never as good as you think it is. So just keep going and keep plugging along,” he said. "I think experience is everything. You look at some of the guys in the clubhouse – Mookie or Freddie or Shohei – who have a lot of at-bats and a lot of experience, they’re just able to navigate the game better. There’s gonna be highs and lows, and they can adjust accordingly.”