Series Thread (Games 84-87): Jul 3-6 vs. Pirates

Mon 7.3 7p: TBD vs. Keller
Tue 7.4 6p: TBD vs. Ortiz
Wed 7.5 7p: TBD vs. Bido
Thu 7.6 7p: TBD vs. Oviedo

Well, that last road trip didn't go very well. After winning two of three in Colorado and then drubbing the last-place Royals 9-3 in the first game of the series, Kansas Ciry raced to victory on Saturday's game and then thoroughly pummeled Tony Gonsolin in Sunday's game, a 9-1 KC victory.

The Dodgers now sit 3.0 games behind the Diamondbacks in second place, and though all is not yet lost, this Dodgers team looks to be completely ill-equipped to play against the younger, faster teams excelling under the new rules (like the division-leading Diamondbacks). I was listening to Sunday's game on the radio, and all Charley and Rick could say was how the Dodgers looked out-hustled and unhungry, all game long.

Austin Barnes started Sunday's game, which was an omen in itself. Barnes actually raised his average to .108 with a hit in his first at bat, but that doesn't change the fact that he is awful and the Dodgers have lost nine of the last 12 games in which Barnes has played. Why he's on the roster is beyond me. 2022 Futures Game participant and Dodgers minor leaguer Diego Cartaya is in AA ball batting .197, but that's still twice as good as Barnes.

Meanwhile, the Dodgers have NO starrters named for any of the four games this series (as of 10.30am Monday), which is concerning. There's at least one bullpen game in there, and our bullpen absolutely sucks. The Dodgers' ERA is 11th in the National League at 4.51, and with the only stalwart, Clayton Kershaw, dealing with shoulder inflammation, we are in for more hurt before the All-Star Break. Luckily for us, there's only six more games left to play, starting with four at home against the plundering sub-.500 Pirates.