Dave Roberts Reveals Why Freddie Freeman is Out of Dodgers Lineup vs Angels

The big news surrounding the Los Angeles Dodgers' lineup on Friday was the fact that starting pitcher Blake Snell was scratched from his scheduled start.

Snell was getting set for his second start of the 2026 season, but instead is going on the injured list with loose bodies in his left elbow.

That overshadowed another big story in the release of the lineup.

Freddie Freeman is not in the lineup, with Dalton Rushing playing first base in his absence.

Freeman doesn't like to miss games unless he has to, and rarely takes days off — especially this early in the season.

Earlier this year, Freeman said he planned on missing three games this season: two for the birth of his daughter and one the day after the Dodgers clinched the National League West division.

Freeman already missed two games on the paternity list, and the Dodgers aren't clinching the NL West in May. So, there was immediately some questions regarding his absence on Friday.

Manager Dave Roberts revealed the reasoning behind Freeman's surprise exclusion from the lineup, saying it was just a day off — but there was a little more to it.

"Yeah [a day off]," Roberts said. "Just being in the middle of 13 in a row, I just felt that this was a good day to kind of sit and watch a ball game."

Roberts continued, unprompted: "He's been doing great. He's trending in the right direction the last couple weeks. But I still feel that it's still the right thing to just kind of give him a day [off] in the middle of this stretch."

Roberts said he texted Freeman a couple days ago letting him know about this plan. Freeman tried to convince him multiple times that he was OK to play, but Roberts "remained firm" in his decision.

"I still think it's the right decision," Roberts said.

Freeman has appeared in 42 games for the Dodgers this year, slashing .270/.343/.423 with four home runs, 20 runs batted in and an OPS of .766. He's continuing to post every day — as he's done his entire career — but did go through an early season struggle that led him to change something in his mechanics.

Freeman slightly altered his batting stance, turning his front foot inward, trying to focus on keeping his front hip from opening up.

“I was just in Houston one day, in the morning, and I was like, ‘You know, I can’t keep pushing balls to left field,’” Freeman said, via the California Post. “I’ve always done little tweaks mentally, externally. I’ve always done like a, hip in. And this time, I just did a foot turn in, to do the same thing.”

The move paid instant dividends, as he went 4-for-11 in the series against the Houston Astros and then homered off Atlanta Braves left-hander Chris Sale in the opener of the next series.

However, Freeman has struggled again over the last six games, going just 4-for-19 (.211) with an OPS of .611.

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