Tuesday, September 03, 2024

Games 139-140 Thread: Sept 3-4 @ Angels

I don't recall this bobblehead driving fans to get in line 10 hours before first pitch. Life was simpler back then.

Tues 9.3: Buehler vs. Detmers
Wed 9.4: Miller vs. Canning
Both games 6.38p first pitch

On August 1, the Dodgers were still playing lackadaisically and had a 4.5-game lead on the Padres and 5.0-game lead on the Diamondbacks--and it was well established that our opponents in the NL West were carrying all the momentum (the Dodgers had a 9.0-game lead on June 20, so it made sense).

But after taking three of four against the Diamondbacks this Labor Day Weekend, the Dodgers are now 5.0 games up on the Padres and 6.0 games up on the Diamondbacks. And our rotation may still be swiss cheese, but at least a healthy offensive lineup is showing more signs of life.

And we have a little respite here against the last-place Angels (who are amazingly 2.5 games behind fourth-place Oakland), before hosting the Guardians and Cubs in a six-game homestand. Let's see if Walker Buehler and Bobby Miller can improve their bids for a postseason roster slot.

UPDATE 9.3 2p: I just heard on the Roggin and Rodney show that the Angels are not planning to do anything for Shohei Ohtani's return to Angel Stadium, for the first time since he left the team after last season. If that's true, that would be incredibly spiteful of Arte Moreno and the organization.

UPDATE 9.4 3p: Apparently, there was a 42-second tribute on the video screen (which seems really paltry, but whatever, Anaheim). And then they did this:

53 comments:

karen said...

@Saxy....I heard the same thing earlier today. No class.

karen said...

Kirsten reporting that there will be a video montage at first AB and John Hartung said it was a late decision and that they hadn't planned anything.

Steve Sax said...

GAME 1

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

Buehler RHP

karen said...

@Saxy...I thought you might be busy at work or something and was just going
to post the lineup for you. Glad I refreshed! :)

Steve Sax said...

Ohtani grounds out for the first out in the top of the first.

karen said...

I didn't see a montage and I'm not impressed with the applause. The people I saw standing had Dodger jerseys on.

EK just said the response wasn't overwhelming.

Steve Sax said...

Freddie with a two-out walk!

Steve Sax said...

Teoscar Ks for the third out.

spank said...

2-1 Dodgers mook singles in shohei

Steve Sax said...

Ohtani triples in a run, and Mookie singles in Shohei!

Steve Sax said...

Teo K, so it’s up to Slappy, with Dodgers at the corners and two out.

Steve Sax said...

Slappy Ks. Jeez, Smith, get your swing back! Running out of time.

Steve Sax said...

2-1 LA

spank said...

BOOOOOOO

spank said...

weak sauce

2-2 going to bottom of 9th

Steve Sax said...

We have three hits in this game, none from the 4-through-9 hitters.

Will Smith and Tommy Edman are both 0-for-4 with 3 Ks.

Get your shit together, guys!

spank said...

thank you MiggyRo

Steve Sax said...

Muncy advances the ghostrunner, and Rojas singles him in!

3-2 LA, T10, one out.

Steve Sax said...

Here's Lux as a PH...he grounds to first, advancing PR Kiermaier to second with two out.

Steve Sax said...

IBB Ohtani to get to Betts.

Steve Sax said...

MOOKIE!

Steve Sax said...

MOOKIE HR ON THE FIRST PITCH!!! 6-2 LA

karen said...

Mookie makes 'em pay!!!

spank said...

Mookie!!

Steve Sax said...

That was fun to watch.

spank said...

Angels announcers said nothing during mookies homerun. they just let the crowd roar. fucking beautiful. wish joe davis would do that but he can't shut the fuck up.

Steve Sax said...

Brasier in for the tenth, with a four-run lead. And he WPs before he can get the first out.

Steve Sax said...

Brandon Drury flies to right for the first out, runner holds at third. One out, B10

Steve Sax said...

Mookie Betts held Drury on third even with a deep fly ball to right. Wow

Steve Sax said...

Stephen and EK: that was only the third time that the player in front of Mookie Betts was IBBd, and the last since 2016. Hilarious.

Steve Sax said...

Adell pops to first. Two out.

Steve Sax said...

Kavadas flies to left. BALLGAME!

WIN

karen said...

Dodger Win!!!

spank said...

thats a wrap

Steve Sax said...

6-2 LA, final

Steve Sax said...

Snakes up 8-6 on the Giants, going to the bottom of the ninth in SF

Steve Sax said...

Yastrzemski with a leadoff single for the Giants.

Steve Sax said...

Interesting: Heliot Ramos with a one-out double, to shave the lead to 8-7 AZ. Here's Matt Chapman.

Steve Sax said...

Chapman out on a comebacker, so it's up to Lamont Wade Jr with two out in the bottom of the ninth. Wade is 0-for-2 tonight.

Steve Sax said...

IBB Wade, so here's Encarnacion with two out and two on. Encarnacion is 1-for-4 with 3Ks tonight.

Steve Sax said...

Encarnacion Ks. AZ wins, so I think the Snakes are now 6.5 games back (and the Dodgers are 5.5 games ahead of the Padres).

Steve Sax said...

Sorry, the standings were still in flux when I wrote that last comment.

The Dodgers are 5.5 games ahead of the Padres, and 6.0 games ahead of the Diamondbacks.

Steve Sax said...

Just updated the post to include commentary about the Ohtani "tributes" on the video screen last night.

karen said...

@Saxy...What did all that mean??? Shohei's 'tribute'? 'Used to work here ' with the Dodger logo as the background?? Like I said last night...No Class.

karen said...

GAME 2

Shohei Ohtani DH
Mookie Betts RF
Freddie Freeman 1B
T Hernandez LF
Gavin Lux 2B
Tommy Edman CF
Max Muncy 3B
Miguel Rojas SS
Austin Barnes C

Bobby Miller RHP

spank said...

oh shit. than tribute was real? i thought it was AI when.i saw it earlier. no bueno

Steve Sax said...

Not 100% sure the Jomboy tweet is real! But funny

Steve Sax said...

The Anaheim scoreboard operator is funny though. Earlier this year, he trolled Jonah Heim telling him he needs to have a daughter named Ana

Steve Sax said...

Why is Austin Barnes in the lineup

spank said...

Miller.ready to give up the game

spank said...

yeah I'm not confident in any of the Dodgers pitchers.

spank said...

I'll say one thing about Miller...he's got a lot of guts.

Steve Sax said...

That…was not good.