Jose Quintana knows his assignment for the National League Championship Series.
Whether he starts or comes out of the bullpen, Quintana is likely to pitch important innings for the Milwaukee Brewers in Game 3 on Thursday, hoping to prevent the Los Angeles Dodgers from taking a 3-0 lead in the best-of-seven format.
Quintana is a soft contact specialist, and he’s also tough on lefties. And that matters most of all because the Dodgers have two lefties in Shohei Ohtani and Freddie Freeman, who can wreck even the best game plans.
Ohtani and Freeman are both headed to the Hall of Fame someday, and either can single-handedly win the Dodgers a game on any given night. And although putting a lefty on the mound is statistically the most effective way to neutralize them both, it’s far from a guarantee.
So heading into what will likely be a multi-inning outing with at least one matchup against both Ohtani and Freeman, Quintana is happy to acknowledge what a daunting task he’s facing (while also not shying away from it in the slightest).
“I’ve been watching videos, the whole lineup … Shohei, Freddie, all the lefties are really, really tough,” Quintana said, per Anthony DiComo of MLB.com. “They are (some) of the best hitters in baseball. It’s always a challenge.”
Ohtani is 2-for-6 lifetime against Quintana, but both hits were home runs. Freeman is 5-for-20 with a home run and a double, adding up to an .873 OPS.
All in all, the hitters on the Dodgers’ roster have gone 38-for-156 against Quintana in his career, with a .768 OPS.
Quintana is looking at this opportunity to face the Dodgers in front of their home crowd in the most positive light possible.
“To get this opportunity, I think it’s a privilege,” Quintana said, per DiComo. “Right now, we are focused to win a game, the first game. And after, we can focus on another game. But L.A. always is a big crowd. It’s huge. The fans are amazing. We’ve been here before, so we know how it is.”
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