Yasiel Puig: Dodgers' volatile element creates danger, glorious results

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The last time the Los Angeles Dodgers were in St. Louis, for a four-game series in early August, closer Kenley Jansen was asked how fast he thought strong-armed sensation Yasiel Puig could throw from the mound.

Jansen thought for a moment, smiled and said, 'I think he could get 95 for sure. Easily. He's got a pretty decent arm.'

Yes. Yes, he does. Puig has a game-changing arm. And Puig has game-changing speed. And Puig has a game-changing bat. And, in all three of those areas, Puig has game-changing aggressiveness. For better or for worse.

'Does he make a few mistakes? Sure,' Dodgers outfielder Skip Schumaker said after the Dodgers' Game 1 win against the Atlanta Braves in the NLDS. 'But if he's that aggressive, why would you take it away from him? He's an electric player, and I love it.'

This electric player is one the Cardinals will have to pay special attention to during the NLCS, which begins Friday at Busch Stadium. They'll be careful taking an extra base -- going first-to-third or tagging up on a potential sacrifice fly -- with anything to hit to him in right field. Cardinals outfielders will have to be alert whenever Puig on the base paths, and any Puig-vs.- Yadier Molina showdown on stolen-base attempts will qualify as must-see television.

'If you give him an inch,' Dodgers catcher A.J. Ellis said, 'he's going to take the base.'

Puig has been a lightning rod at times in this, his rookie season. He has been criticized for displaying a lack of fundamentals, for being too exuberant when he celebrates and too mopey when he's frustrated. He has been benched for a lack of hustle.

These accusations all have an element of truth to them. That's not really the point, though, as far as his teammates are concerned.

'He's a special player,' Schumaker said. 'He's a lot smarter than people give him credit for. The more you're around him, the more you like him. I mean, our teammates love him. I think it's the media that (gives him) a bad rap every now and then, but he's special. He's going to be around for a long time.'

In 104 games, Puig hit .319 with 19 homers, 11 stolen bases and a .925 OPS. In the Dodgers' 3-1 NLDS win against the Braves, he went 2-for-4, 1-for-4, 3-for-5 and 2-for-4 in the four games. Only teammate Hanley Ramirez and the Boston Red Sox's Jacoby Ellsbury have higher averages than Puig's stellar .471.

Clearly, this October stage hasn't fazed Puig. Not that anyone should be surprised with this next step in his development. When he was called up from Class AA Chattanooga in early June, he hit four home runs in his first five major-league games and was hitting .443 through his first 27 games.

And then there's the other stat, one that helps show his impact on the Dodgers. In the 104 games he's played, the Dodgers were 66-38 (a .635 winning percentage); without him, they were 26-32 (a .448 percentage). Now, obviously, that's not solely because of Puig. His arrival in the bigs coincided with the return of Ramirez and Zack Greinke from the disabled list, and there were other factors.

But his teammates will tell you not to overlook the Puig factor.

'He plays with such an energy and passion, it's infectious,' Ellis said.