The Los Angeles Dodgers dropped third baseman Max Muncy from their lineup for Game 2 of the NLDS against the Atlanta Braves. The Dodgers won the first game of their NLDS matchup on Saturday, taking a 5-3 win over the Braves in a dominant performance. Muncy played a big part of the win, hitting a home run in the sixth inning to give the Dodgers a 5-1 lead.
Muncy stands alone at the top of the Dodgers' all-time postseason home runs leaderboard with 17 in his career. Starting in his place is veteran infielder and World Series hero Miguel Rojas. Muncy had a solid season for the Dodgers, making his first All-Star appearance since 2021 while recording 4.1 bWAR.
He hit 29 homers, his most since 2023, and had 76 RBIs through 149 games — the majority of which came at the hot corner. The decision likely comes due to the Braves' decision on their starting pitcher, as left-hander Ray Kerr will take the mound for the second game of the series. Kerr made nine appearances in the regular season for the Braves, posting a 1.47 ERA over the course of 18.1 innings while striking out 11 batters.
He made one appearance for the Braves in the Wild Card Series against the Philadelphia Phillies, starting the win-or-go-home Game 3 matchup between the two teams. He hurled 3.1 scoreless innings with two strikeouts, allowing just one hit and issuing one walk. Manager Dave Roberts tends to adjust his lineup to avoid as many same-sided hitting matchups as possible, so Muncy's move out of the lineup isn't anything out of the ordinary.
The Dodgers have the opportunity to take a commanding lead in the NLDS on Sunday, as a win would give them a 2-0 advantage before heading to Atlanta for the next two games of the series. Teams with a 2-0 lead have won 83 of the 93 NLDS matchups in the best-of-5 format, so history will be on the Dodgers' side should they win Friday. Kerr has a solid track record for the Braves this season, though, so they'll have to perform at the top of their game in order to put themselves in that position.
The second game of the NLDS between the Braves and Dodgers begins at 5:00 p.m.
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