Dodgers News: Max Muncy Addresses Defensive Issues, 'When Things Go Bad, They Go Bad'
Los Angeles Dodgers infielder Max Muncy is one of the best leftie sluggers when he is looking right. At the moment, the numbers don't reflect that, but no one is worried about that side of the ball for Muncy; the defensive side worries the Dodgers and their fans.
Muncy is now the Dodgers' primary third baseman, and even though he played a bit in the hot corner last season, he is the lone third baseman right now. If things stand, that may not last long for the 32-year-old, but he told Dodgers Insider for the Atheltic Fabian Ardaya that ups and downs come at that position.
“I feel really good over there, I feel I’m a very good defender over there,” Muncy said. “But like I said, when things go bad, they go bad. You get a couple bad hops, put yourself in a couple bad positions, you get a ball 7 inches off the plate called a strike.“
That’s the beauty of baseball, but there’s gonna come a time where things go good and I’ll have a candy hop every single play over there and hopefully I make every single one of them. Just one of those things that you have to weather the storm and keep going out there every day and working hard.”
Muncy has already committed two errors in five games. According to baseball references, Muncy has a .895 fielding percentage at third in 60 innings in this early part of the season. The two-time all-star realizes that's the nature of this grueling sport.
“It’s just baseball,” Muncy said. “It’s a very tough sport. When this game gets you down, it really gets you down. You just have to find a way to weather the storm.”
Unfortunately, things aren't going well for Muncy on defense and offense. He's batting .155 along with his horrendous fielding percentage, but Dodgers manager Dave Roberts told Ardaya he's not worried about Max's defense.
“So far, it hasn’t been great,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said when asked to assess Muncy’s defense at third base in the opening week of the season. … “So the hops are playing differently,” Roberts said. “It’s coming off a little more different than we’re used to. No excuse. And Max is well aware of that. But he’s a good defender. He’s just in a little funk right now.”
Things are "still early" for that Funky Muncy, but we're unsure when/how things could turn around for the 2020 champion. We'll have to wait and see.
