NLDS: Yasiel Puig only appears as pinch runner as Dodgers are eliminated

Yasiel Puig only appeared as a pinch runner in the 9th inning as the Los Angeles Dodgers were eliminated from the playoffs in the NLDS by the St. Louis Cardinals.

It was the decision that had people second-guessing Dodgers’ manager Don Mattingly before Game 4 of the NLDS even started. Yasiel Puig was benched in favor of Andre Ethier. Puig was available in this game, but only made an appearance in the 9th inning as a pinch-runner.

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This move came for a couple reasons. It was partially a match-up decision to get Ethier’s bat in the game. Why Ethier had to play in front of Puig, however, is unclear. So then people pointed to Puig’s slump in the playoffs in which he struck out in seven straight at-bats as a possible reason for the move.

Here’s the thing with that: Puig boasted a .774 OPS entering this game, even with that stretch of strikeouts. Additionally, he was leading the Dodgers with four runs scored. The strikeouts were ugly, sure, but Puig was still more productive than a number of Dodgers’ hitters.

There was one final theory about Puig’s absence from the starting lineup: the young outfielder was supposedly dealing with a bum ankle. Mattingly might have been thinking that Puig just would not be able to to have the same impact because his health wasn’t 100%.

That theory falls short, however, because Mattingly used Puig as a pinch-runner in the 9th inning. If the ankle was the reason for Puig’s spot on the bench, one hardly imagines that he would have been out there strictly to run the bases.

By not starting Puig, Mattingly sat his best all-around player. Even with a second-half slump and a playoff slump, Puig has remained one of the most productive offensive players for the Dodgers. His .774 OPS was fifth among Dodgers’ position players for the playoffs. His .863 OPS was the best on the team during the regular season. His 5.4 WAR this season was a full win better than anybody else on the roster.

Puig might be controversial, but don’t over-think it: Don Mattingly benched his best player when he benched Yasiel Puig for an elimination game on Tuesday night. That decision was first-guessed and it will continue to be second-guessed for days to come. And it should be.

Yasiel Puig only appeared as a pinch runner in the 9th inning as the Los Angeles Dodgers were eliminated from the playoffs in the NLDS by the St. Louis Cardinals.

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