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Dodger Hanley Ramirez Will Play Tonight

Evan Budrovich |
October 14, 2013 | 3:45 p.m. PDT

Staff Writer

Hanley Ramirez (Wikimedia Commons)
Hanley Ramirez (Wikimedia Commons)
The Los Angeles Dodgers have not scored in the last 19 innings of the National League Championship Series, and help has arrived in the form of Hanley Ramirez, who announced he will play tonight against the St. Louis Cardinals

"I'd do anything for this team and for this city so I'm going to be out there tonight for the fans and for my teammates,” Ramirez told reporters hours before first pitch.

Ramirez, who was hit by a Joe Kelly fastball in his first at-bat of Game 1 and had to sit out the Dodgers most recent 1-0 loss, promised that he would play, even adding that if this were a regular season game he would not suit up tonight.

The Dodgers are down 2-0 in the series against the St. Louis Cardinals and may not have center fielder Andre Ethier either. Mattingly said Ethier, who has been nursing a sore lower leg, would be a game-time decision which rests in the managers hands.

In order to remain functional on the field, Ramirez will wear protective armor under his jersey tonight. Facing Cardinals ace Adam Wainright in a seemingly must-win game at Chavez Ravine, the injured shortstop will play through what he jokingly told reporters stemmed in almost every basic task, from walking to coughing or even breathing.

The return of a somewhat-healthy Ramirez, who leads the team in postseason batting average (.444) and tied for RBI (6) with Juan Uribe through the team’s first six games, should certainly bolster a fading Dodgers offense in need of some major power production. In Game Two alone, the 4-6 hitters Adrian Gonzalez, Yasiel Puig and Juan Urbie went hitless against Cardinals pitching.

Moving forward to tonight’s matchup, the Dodgers will look to copy their counterparts of the Los Angeles Kings (4-2 over St. Louis Blues) by overcoming a 2-0 deficit in a playoff series against a St. Louis-based team. Take it for what it’s worth, but earlier this afternoon in batting practice Ramirez blasted an opposite-field home run.  

The Dodgers send South-Korean lefty Hyun-Jin Ryu, who is arguably coming off one of his worst performances in the second half of the season allowing four runs in three innings of work. That being said, in Ryu’s only start against the Cardinals he held St. Louis to one unearned run on five hits, all singles, over seven innings, walked none, struck out seven and got 17 of his 21 outs via groundball or strikeout on August 8th.

Given the offenses recent woes, including an 0-10 (6 K’s) clip from Yasiel Puig, the Dodgers will certainly welcome Ramirez back to the lineup tonight against one of the best postseason pitchers in all of Major League Baseball. First pitch is set for 5:07 PM PST tonight on TBS.  

Reach Staff Writer Evan Budrovich here



 

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