Los Angeles Dodgers during game against the Miami Marlins Sunday, June 28, 2015 at Marlins Park in Miami, Florida. The Dodgers beat the Marlins 2-0 . Photo by Jon SooHoo/©Los Angeles Dodgers,LLC 2015

Kiké Hernandez is 14 for 41 with five doubles, two triples, a homer and three walks against left-handed starting pitching this season. (Jon SooHoo/Los Angeles Dodgers)

Mets at Dodgers, 1:10 p.m.
Kiké Hernandez, SS
Howie Kendrick, 2B
Justin Turner, 3B
Adrian Gonzalez, 1B
Yasiel Puig, RF
Soctt Van Slyke, LF
Joc Pederson, CF
A.J. Ellis, C
Mike Bolsinger, P

By Jon Weisman

It’s more like a bug bite than a debilitating injury, but the Dodgers could be happier, healthier and heartier facing left-handed starters this year.

Going into today’s game against left-handed Mets rookie Steven Matz, the Dodgers are 7-8 (.467) against southpaw starters in 2015, compared with 39-28 (.582) against righties.

In those eight losses, the Dodgers have scored a combined 14 runs. Three of those eight losses have come in games started by San Francisco’s Madison Bumgarner, who has a 1.31 ERA against Los Angeles in 2015.

In their seven wins against lefty starters, the Dodgers have scored 35 runs (five per game).

Lefty starters have held the Dodgers to a .668 OPS, as opposed to their .783 OPS against righty starters. Confounding expectations, Dodger right-handed batters have hit better against righties than lefties in 2015.

Yasiel Puig (1.082 OPS) and Kiké Hernandez (1.034 OPS) have been the Dodgers’ best hitters against lefty starters this year, which helps explain why Hernandez is batting leadoff today. Joc Pederson is starting in the No. 7 spot for the first time since April, though his OPS against lefty starters (.875) is third on the team, ahead of Scott Van Slyke (.744).

One problem for the Dodgers is that the typical No. 3 and No. 4 hitters, Justin Turner (.559) and Adrian Gonzalez (.601) have not done well in their small samples against lefty starters this year. The right-handed hitting Turner’s career platoon splits actually favor him against right-handed pitching (.681 OPS vs. all lefties, .816 OPS vs. all righties).

Further, Dodger catchers A.J. Ellis, Yasmani Grandal and Austin Barnes are 7 for 44 with two doubles and no home runs against southpaw starters this year (.204 slugging percentage), though Ellis does have 10 walks to give him a .356 on-base percentage.

Even Alex Guerrero only has a .239 on-base percentage against left-handed starters, though he has two homers in 45 at-bats.

One other piece of trivia: The Dodgers have one stolen base all season against a left-handed starter, and that was by Zack Greinke.