Remember when we were kids and our dads and Little League coaches used to harp on us (mercilessly) to “Keep your eye on the ball?”

Well, somewhere along the way, 26-year-old Dodgers utility infielder/outfielder Zach McKinstry forgot baseball’s Golden Rule.

…until a week ago.

“I was closing my eyes at contact, which is wild to think,” McKinstry said after his 2-for-4 day on Sunday afternoon at Dodger Stadium that included a second-inning (eventual) game-winning grand slam home run. “But just when I was doing re-hab stuff, I would… when I try to feel certain things on the body, I like to close my eyes so I can feel it more. And so I was closing my eyes at contact and we kind of saw that in San Diego and started working on it – making sure my eyes were open – and it helped. I started seeing the ball a little bit longer out of the pitcher’s hand, and, yeah, it’s been good. I’ve been hitting the ball hard ever since and having good at-bats.”

Good at-bats indeed. Since that three-game series in San Diego June 21-23, the Toledo, OH native and Dodgers 33rd-round draft pick in 2016 out of Central Michigan University is 4-for-11 (.364), with 2 home runs and five RBI’s.

“I had the same problem when I was younger,” McKinstry added when pressed further on this eyes-closed thing. “My dad and I kind of laugh about it. It’s definitely… I mean, you need your eyes to hit, so definitely a priority.”

When asked when was the last time he hit a grand slam, McKinstry answered: “I’ve never hit one before in my life. That was my first one.”

Who knew.

Of course, hitting a game-winning grand slam means nothing without good (great) pitching, which the Dodgers got from their ace and future Hall of Famer Clayton Kershaw, who had the best outing of his MLB-leading 17 starts this season. All the Dallas, TX native and Dodgers first-round draft pick in 2006 out of Highland Park High School in University Park, TX did was allow only one run on four hits while walking one and striking out a season-high 13 Cubs batters in his brilliant eight innings of work in his team’s eventual 7-1 win over the north siders.

“I was getting some swing-and-missed on [my slider], I would say that was good; able to use that to both sides of the plate,” Kershaw said postgame. “I told it to (Dodgers manager) Dave (Roberts) too, but any time you get to pitch a 4:15 game at Dodger Stadium with the shadows, it’s a good game – not easy to see there – so I’ll take it, for sure.”

“I can’t recount every start, all – I don’t know how many starts he’s made – but as far as the sequencing, using every part of the strike zone today, probably yeah,” Roberts answered when asked if this was the best he’s seen from Kershaw this season. “I mean, I think 12, 13 punch, one walk, rhythm was good, Austin (Barnes) was fantastic back there. Clayton, it was … yeah, it’s hard to imagine him being any better, put it that way.”

Sunday’s win was very much needed, as the NL West first-place San Francisco Giants also won on Sunday to maintain their 3.5-game lead over the second-place Dodgers. The two teams open a brief two-game series against one another on Monday night at Dodger Stadium. Should Dave Roberts’ team manage to pull off a two-game sweep of ‘The Hated Ones,’ the Giants would leave town with a scant game and a half lead over the Dodgers.

Anything less, well, you know…

Play Ball!

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