Freddie Freeman to hit third for NL All-Stars

Freeman also singled and a walke for a three-reach day. He gave the Dodgers all the offense they’d need with Yoshinobu Yamamoto and the Los Angeles bullpen breezing through the San Diego lineup when he connected on his 15th homer of the campaign. He also singled in a run, and he’s up to 49 RBI while improving his line to .297/.387/.508. Regression comes for everyone at some point. It doesn’t appear to be coming for Freeman anytime soon.

The two doubles put Freeman at 566 for his career, pushing him past Carlos Beltrán for 29th place on the all-time list. He also moved out of a tie with Bobby Abreu and Carlos Lee and into a tie with Garret Anderson and Orlando Cepeda for 87th place on the RBI list at 1,365. He’s hitting .296/.387/.531 with five homers this month.

Freeman belted a go-ahead, two-run shot off reliever Kevin Kelly in the bottom of the sixth, his 12th of the season. The 36-year-old first baseman continues to age gracefully as his wRC+ has been between 136 and 139 in each of the past three seasons. Freeman isn’t a true standout in any single roto category, but hitting in the heart of the Dodger lineup will provide plenty of counting stats to go along with a strong batting average.

Freeman collected the 2,500th hit of his career with a run-scoring single to center field, doing so during the Dodgers’ 10-run seventh inning in which 15 batters came to the plate. The 36-year-old first baseman is the majors’ active leader in hits and the first to reach the milestone since Robinson Canó in 2019. He’s in the middle of an extended hot streak at the dish, batting .345 (20-for-58) with four homers and 13 RBI over his last 15 games.

Both the Dodgers and Angels were shut out through eight innings of a pitcher’s duel at Dodger Stadium on Friday. Freeman had drawn a walk and had one hit before stepping in to bat in the bottom of the ninth, leading off against Kirby Yates. The 36-year-old first baseman delivered with a solo blast to center field to walk it off with his tenth home run of the season.

Freeman gave the Dodgers an early lead with a two-run homer off Mike Soroka in the first inning. He later singled in the fifth. The 36-year-old first baseman enjoyed an excellent month of May, hitting .287 with five homers. Tuesday’s blast was his ninth of the season while hitting .274/.360/.475 with 30 runs scored and 32 RBI across 253 plate appearances.

Freeman doubled the Dodgers’ lead to 2-0 with a solo homer off Tomoyuki Sugano in the first inning; one batter after Shohei Ohtani clobbered a solo shot to begin the game. He also singled to bump his slash to .271/.368/.462. That’s far from an unplayable slash, but a smidgen disappointing just because Freeman has been so much better than that line over his career.

It’s the third time in his career that Freeman has walked four times. Oddly enough, he also had a hit all three times. On July 27, 2019, he had the same line against the Phillies that he did tonight: a double, four walks and three runs scored. On June 17, 2024, he had a single and five walks, one of which was intentional, against the Rockies. Freeman is batting .265/.362/.449 in 213 plate appearances. His double tonight was the 561st of his career, moving him past Jeff Kent and Eddie Murray for sole possession of 30th place on the all-time list. Next up is Carlos Beltran at 565.

Freeman got the scoring started right away, taking Griffin Canning deep for a two-run blast in the first inning. He went yard again in the sixth, leading off with a solo blast of Jeremiah Estrada to tie the game. The 36-year-old first baseman is up to six homers and 23 RBI while slashing .260/.342/.435 across 199 plate appearances.

It’s nothing more than a routine night off for the 36-year-old slugger. Dalton Rushing will start in his place at first base and will bat eighth for the Dodgers against Angels’ right-hander Jack Kochanowicz.