Tuesday, June 04, 2024

Games 62-64 Thread: June 4-6 @ Pirates

Tues 6.4: Glasnow vs. Jones
Wed 6.5: Paxton vs. Skenes
Thu 6.6: Buehler vs. Falter
All games 3.40p

Paul Skenes is the hottest young prospect in baseball today, with a wicked 100 mph fastball that has the young Pirates pitcher referenced to Stephen Strasburg. And Skenes, from Fullerton CA, is worthy of the hype: after a late call-up likely due to service time manipulation, Skenes has gone 2-0 with a 2.45 ERA and has 30Ks in 22 innings.

And seriously, when you watch these highlights of Skenes shutting down the Cubs at Wrigley Field with some wicked movement, it's pretty impressive (from May 17, 2024):

It's too bad we won't have Max Muncy in the lineup, as Muncy is one of the few guys in the Dodgers' lineup who hunts fastballs. We'll see if the rest of the guys can keep up, but I'm guessing the bottom of our order goes pretty quickly.

Skenes is also known for being boyfriend to LSU gymnast (and NCAA champion) Olivia Dunne, who has a large social media following on multiple platforms. I'm sure this Wednesday game against the Dodgers will get the requisite amount of hype. We'll see how James Paxton (still undefeated at 5-0, with a 3.29 ERA) holds up under the pressure.

Oh yeah, and there are two other games bookending the Skenes showdown.

photo: Nuccio DiNuzzo / Getty Images

93 comments:

Steve Sax said...

Let's get ready for GAME 1

Betts SS
Ohtani DH
Freeman 1B
Smith C
T Hernandez LF
Heyward RF
Lux 2B
Rojas 3B
Taylor CF

Glasnow RHP

Steve Sax said...

Oh man, Taylor is in the lineup. Dodgers are 12-9 in games where Taylor starts.

Steve Sax said...

Jared Jones is dealing, with pitches north of 100mph!

Betts grounds out; Ohtani Ks; Freeman two-out single; Smith double to left. Second and third, two out. That's a nummer because Teoscar is up next.

Yep, Teoscar makes the third out on the first pitch.

0-0, mid-1

karen said...

Where is Joe Davis?

karen said...

Great play at first by Freddie to get Reynolds

Steve Sax said...

Glasnow gets Oneil Cruz swinging.

0-0 through 1.

Steve Sax said...

Heyward with a leadoff walk, and then steals second! But it's still this abyss of a bottom of the order...

Steve Sax said...

Lux takes a batter's time out and then Ks. One out.

Steve Sax said...

1-2-3 inning for Glasnow in the second.

0-0 through 2

Steve Sax said...

Geez, how many inning-ending ABs is Teoscar going to have in this game? That's two already in three innings.

And just like that, Glasnow gives up a dinger and the lead. Pirates up 1-0, B3.

karen said...

1-0 Bucs after 3

spank said...

miserable offense

Steve Sax said...

Jones has shut us down, six scoreless. Hopefully he won’t come out for the seventh.

Teoscar can’t hit the slider. He was just rung up again on a slider.

karen said...

Wow. Great pitch by Glasnow to end the sixth

Steve Sax said...

Lux with a leadoff double in the seventh!

But Rojas hits a comebacker, and of course CT3 can’t do shit. So it is up to Mookie.

Steve Sax said...

And Mookie flies to right.

Dodgers 0-for-10 with RISP.

Get rid of Chris Taylor

Steve Sax said...

Vesia works a great seventh.

Ohtani with a leadoff single in the eighth.

Steve Sax said...

Chapman pitching to Freeman, and Ks him.

Steve Sax said...

Slappy walks, so now there’s another RISP for Teoscar to squander…

Yep he flies out.

Runners at the corners for Pages, PH for Heyward.

Steve Sax said...

Pages Ks.

0-for-12 with RISP.

This has to end. What the hell is von scoyoc doing?!?!

karen said...

The Dodgers have left 9 men on. If they lose this game by one run it will be so frusrating

spank said...

weak

karen said...

Yep. I'm frustrated.

spank said...

that was CT3s last at bat with the Dodgers. im calling it.

spank said...

Game 2

Mookie SS
Ohtani DH
Freeman 1B
Smith C
Hernandez LF
Heyward RF
Lux 2B
Pages Cf
Taylor 3B

Paxton P

Steve Sax said...

Thanks for the lineup, spank!

I'm petrified of what's going to happen today, given the lineup sucked so bad yesterday.

And yet, Chris Taylor is in the lineup again. He'd better lean in over the plate. It's his only shot.

spank said...

no problem saxy. 👍

spank said...

Betts and Ohtani looked like shit up there.

karen said...

Skenes grew up an Angel fan? I don't care how hard he can throw a pitch, dude is an idiot

spank said...

Hwyward double.

karen said...

SHOHEI BABY!!

karen said...

Solo for Pages. 7-3 T5

karen said...

Heyward scores on a passes ball. 8-4 T6

karen said...

Slappy brings in Freddie. 8-5 T7

karen said...

Final score 10-6. 2 losses in a row

Steve Sax said...

I'm still pretty bummed out by yesterday's meltdown. We can beat Skenes, we just can't beat Skenes AND Paxton...

Here's a good article about the Skenes / Ohtani showdown (I'd call this meeting a draw).

Steve Sax said...

game three

betts ss
ohtani dh
freeman 1b
t hernandez rf
pages cf
rojas 2b
k hernandez 3b
vargas lf
barnes c

buehler rhp

karen said...

@Saxy...A new lineup to stop the losing streak?

Steve Sax said...

yep, trying no caps today. it's also a strategy for lowering my blood pressure about the way our team is playing :(

spank said...

Freddie!!

karen said...

Freddie launches one for a 3 run homer

spank said...

i turn.game on and first pitch Freeman hits a 3-run homerun

Steve Sax said...

4-0 dodgers on the rojas rbi single

clearly, it's the no-caps!

Steve Sax said...

look what happens when we finally throw a lineup out there that doesn't include chris taylor

Steve Sax said...

kike strikes out for the second out

Steve Sax said...

rojas steals second, to set it up for vargas and an rbi

Steve Sax said...

rojas takes second without a throw. not bad, especially against a left-handed pitcher.

karen said...

i'm going to follow suit with Sax. i love it that kiki has his baby daughters name on his glove.

Steve Sax said...

vargas works a walk, so it comes to austin barnes, batting ninth

Steve Sax said...

barnes is down 0-2 before the at bat even starts!

karen said...

***oops, i mean sax

Steve Sax said...

falter just pushing fastballs inside on barnesy

Steve Sax said...

barnes called strike three. of course.

4-0 los angeles, mid-1

Steve Sax said...

kike steps in front of mookie to try and get that infield hit, and he can't get the ball out of his glove. if you go for it, kike, you gotta convert.

luckily, oneil cruz strikes out.

4-0 through 1.

Steve Sax said...

falter then mows down the big three 1-2-3 in the second.

4-0 dodgers, mid-2

Steve Sax said...

mookie error allows olivares to reach first. and then kike error (with two out) allows henry davis to reach safely.

come on, guys, let's play some fucking infield defense here

Steve Sax said...

buehler yields an rbi single to suwinski, their number nine batter. dammit.

4-1

Steve Sax said...

andrew mccutchen up as the tying run here in the second.

Steve Sax said...

buehler ks cutch.

4-1 los angeles through 2 full

Steve Sax said...

orel is saying that buehler has a tendency to throw uncompetitive pitches.

what about that horrible defense behind him in the second? not his fault.

Steve Sax said...

pages with a sharp infield hit to reach, and then rojas smokes one to third and pages *may* have reached second base in time to beat the force attempt? tough to tell

Steve Sax said...

nope, call on the field overturned, pages is out.

doesn't matter, as kike once again wastes an at bat, flying out to short to end the inning.

Steve Sax said...

walker buehler has men at the corners and one out, bottom 3

Steve Sax said...

cruz steals second base. of course barnes can't do shit

Steve Sax said...

prior to this game, 14 of 16 base runners have successfully stolen on barnes.

sac fly by olivares, so it's 4-2 now

Steve Sax said...

and, gonzales crushes a two-run homer to tie it up. buehler isn't even out of the third inning yet.

Steve Sax said...

tellez with a two-out double. buehler is fucking toast.

Steve Sax said...

to be fair, that wasn't buehler's fault--ball bounced off of vargas' glove. pathetic.

that should be the third error of the game for the dodgers.

Steve Sax said...

buehler walks henry davis.

buehler is a fricking mess.

Steve Sax said...

suwinski singles, so the bases are loaded. and walker can't find the plate.

Steve Sax said...

mccutchen makes the third out.

4-4 tie through three.

karen said...

ohtani looked really bad there

karen said...

dodgers cornered with no outs

karen said...

kiki brings pages in. 6-4 boys

spank said...

6-4 LA

karen said...

kiki scores on bad throw to second. 7-4

karen said...

i miss vin schooling us about d day

spank said...

Mook!!!

karen said...

mookie with a 3 run homer. 10-4

Steve Sax said...

everyone in the dodgers’ lineup has a hit, even barnes and kike

Steve Sax said...

@karen very good call about vin and d-day

Steve Sax said...

miggyro with an rbi double, it’s 11-4

spank said...

Dodgers need to keep this offense up during the weekend. Yankees are legit

Steve Sax said...

rancho ardiendo for vargas, none out in the top of the sixth

Steve Sax said...

vargas fricking gidps

Steve Sax said...

and austin barnes strikes out, of course

Steve Sax said...

chris taylor enters the game for freeman, and promptly strikes out in his first at bat

Steve Sax said...

evan phillips: not sharp

it’s now 11-7 due to the cruz hr, and olivares also has a two-out hit to keep it going

karen said...

there have been so many bad calls tonight

karen said...

win and on to yankee stadium

Steve Sax said...

vesia closes out the ninth with three strikeouts.

final, 11-7

win

spank said...

see y'all tomorrow

Steve Sax said...

apple television tomorrow