With two outs in the bottom of the eighth inning, the Dodgers had runners on first and second with Padres closer Josh Hader on the mound.
Cody Bellinger’s spot in the lineup came up, and with the lefty killer Hader on the mound, L.A. manager Dave Roberts chose to pinch-hit for Bellinger.
The only question was: Who will pinch-hit? Would it be Chris Taylor, a right-handed hitter who strikes out way too often? Maybe rookie Miguel Vargas, a lefty-masher in the minors who hasn’t proved much yet in the big leagues?
Nope, it was Austin Barnes, who had his best offensive season in five years this year, but also his OPS+ was just 94, so it’s not like he was good.