Post-Game 58 Thread: Dodgers Rout Yankees And It Was Really Fun

DODGERS 18, YANKEES 2

I didn't get a chance to see SoSG Dusty at this game, which was pretty much the only disappointing part of what was otherwise an outstanding afternoon at the Stadium. My anxiety level was high, knowing Landon Knack was on the mound for the Dodgers, and my nerves were already fried having had awful traffic luck getting to Chavez Ravine (the crossing guards really need to let cars flow too, and not just pedestrians; or install some damn bridges for god's sake, Frank McCourt!).

Knack worked out of a leadoff walk to Trent Grisham in the first by getting Aaron Judge to ground into a double play, and then Cody Bellinger flied out to end the top of the first.

And then, it was on.

Four singles in the first five batters, including a solid RBI single from Max Muncy, put the Dodgers up 2-0. A sacrifice fly from Michael Conforto stretched the lead to three, and a hot shot off the bat of Tommy Edman tied up Yankees third baseman Jorbit Vivas and scored Muncy, for a 4-0 lead.

One inning later, the Dodgers had Will Warren on the ropes, knocking him out of the game on a three-run HR by Muncy. But it dind't stop there: a two-out walk to Conforto, a RBI double by Edman, and then a surprising two-run HR from Hyeseong Kim stretched the lead to 10-0 thorugh two frames. The Dodgers batted around in both of the first two innings, posting two very crooked numbers. And it kept getting silly.

Aaron Judge did have two solo HR this game, which was great for the reigning AL MVP. Max Muncy, on the other hand, had two three-run HRs this game, as well as an RBI single, to total 7 RBI on the day. Muncy went 3-for-6 and raised his batting average to .220. His .723 OPS at the completion of this game may have gotten him all the way back to replacement level (he had an OPS+ of 94 entering tonight's game), and if Muncy can break out of his year-long slump at last, that would be incredible for the bottom of our lineup.

Pages, another bat who has gotten really hot in the last 2-3 weeks, notched a HR of his own in the seventh to extend the lead to 15-1, and, following Judge's second HR, rookie Dalton Rushing came out in the eighth inning and hit his first major-league HR to make it 18-2 (a three-run shot off of Yankees position player Pablo Reyes).

Knack ended up earning the win with a 6.0 IP, 5 H performance (3 BB, 6 Ks). Anthony Banda had an impressive 2 K seventh inning; Chris Stratton gave up only one run in the eighth; and position player Kike Hernandez pitched a scoreless ninth inning for the Dodgers. Knack's great starting effort, one night after Tony Gonsolin went six innings on his own, helped rest that Dodgers bullpen that has worked more than any other pen in baseball this year.

The Dodgers also had some sweet defensive play from Hyeseong Kim, in the third inning with an unassisted double play that douvbled Austin Wells off second with Kim diving to tag the second-base bag before Wells got back, and then an amazing strike from centerfield (where Kim had shifted to start the sixth inning), nailing Judge at second when Judge tried to stretch a leadoff single to a double (and instead, was nailed with a perfect throw and tag by Edman). No issues with Judge trying to make something happen there for the Yankees, but credit to the Dodgers for shutting that effort down quickly.

So that's the second straight game the Dodgers have taken from the Yankees on national television, with tomorrow's game also nationally televised (this time, on ESPN). It was a wonderful time for me, sipping that huge can of Michelob Ultra, and enjoying the fireworks on the field.

Let's go, Dodgers!

Game 58 Thread: May 31 vs. Yankees, 4p

Max, Fried.

Landon Knack (2-2, 5.22) vs. Will Warren (3-2, 4.09).

The Dodgers overcame their national-TV curse and actually won last night's game, staging a furious six-run comeback from 5-2 in the sixth inning to take the lead 6-5 off of Max Fried, and then extend the lead to 8-5 off of Andy Pages' two-run RBI single. The outcome was totally surprising, given Dodgers starter Tony Gonsolin was serving up meatballs (four HR, in fact) to the Yankees' lineup--but to Gonsolin's credit, he hung in there through 6.0 IP, outdueling Yankees ace Fried and earning the victory.

We're going to need a lot of the same formula tonight, given Landon Knack's penchant for meatballs of his own, not to mention this game is also nationally-televised (this time on Fox, rather than Apple TV+). My expectations are very low for tonight's game, but I'd sure like to see a win.

SoSG Sax and Dusty will both be at today's game, so please give a shout if you're going to be there! Let's go, Dodgers!

Game 57 Thread: May 30 vs. Yankees, 7p

Tony Gonsolin (2-1, 4.68) vs. Max Fried (7-0, 1.29).

A rematch with the New York Yankees, whom we vanquished in the 2024 World Series, at Dodger Stadium? Yep, I certainly like Game 1 of this series...though going up against Harvard-Westlake Wolverine Max Fried isn't going to be easy. Fried is off to a blistering start with the Yankees, who picked him up this offseason while other teams thought he might be soft (according to Buster Olney on his Baseball Tonight podcast). But in one of the toughest cities to in which to play baseball, Fried is sporting a 2.6 WAR is tied for fifth in the majors this season.

Hmm, now I'm a little nervous. Maybe I'll go watch a movie to calm the nerves.

Just How Bad Is Tanner Scott So Far?

Tanner Scott just blew his MLB-leading fifth save with the Dodgers yesterday, instantly turning a 4-2 lead in the eighth inning into a tie game that grew into a 7-4 defeat. Scott, a much-ballyhooed free agent pickup this offseason, has a 3.28 ERA, which is in line with his career ERA (3.55). And he has 10 saves this year.

Many Dodger fans have been frustrated by Scott, but he still boasts a 0.2 WAR this year. And positive WAR is better than nothing.

An interesting comparison case is Devin Williams, who was the Yankees' big relief pitcher pickup this offseason. With a career WAR of 8.2 (which rivals Scott's 9.1 career WAR over 9 years, two more than Williams), Williams has also lost the closer role this year thanks to a bevy of shaky performances.

Williams has only blown one save this year. But he has only 5 saves on the season, and his 6.75 ERA translates to a -0.7 WAR this year, much worse than Scott's.

With so many of the Dodgers' high-leverage arms on the IL, we have no choice but to trot Tanner Scott out there and hope for the best. It's not a great strategy--we lost an opportunity to sweep the Guardians yesterday and instead finished the roadtrip with a mediocre 3-3 record--but it may be all we've got for now.

Yikes.

Game 56 Thread: May 28 @ Guardians, 10a

Wait a second, Slade is now with the Guardians? Holy crossover, Batman!

Clayton Kershaw (0-0, 7.50) vs. Slade Cecconi (1-1. 3.27).

Clayton Kershaw looked like he was off to a promising start last week against the Mets, when a rain delay cut short his outing (2.0 IP, ) ER, 1 BB and 1 K). Rain is in the forecast for Wednesday in Cleveland (thanks to SoSG reader karen for that headsup!). Let's hope Kershaw can continue his progression back from injury today, without Mother Nature getting in the way.

To be fair, it looks like the Guardians will let anyone join their team.

Game 55 Thread: May 27 @ Guardians, 3p

Today's opposing starting pitcher (with a huge assumption on the gender preferences of the insect).

Dustin May (2-4, 4.09) vs. Tanner Bibee (4-4, 3.57).

Last night, out of the spotlight of nationally-broadcast television, felt like the type of road game the Dodgers should be playing: solid pitching that goes relatively deep with efficiency (Yoshinobu Yamamoto, 6.0 IP, 3 H, 2 ER, 2 BB and 7 Ks across 88 pitches); power hitting (Shohei Ohtani and Will Smith solo HRs) as well as timely hitting (4-for-8 with RISP, including a nice two-out rally in the sixth with Mookie Betts and Freddie Freeman RBI singles); and only one error (this time, not from Max Muncy!).

The Guardians are solid: behind the Tigers in the AL Central, but in the first wild card position in the American League. Tanner Bibee has also been solid for the Guardians, while Dustin May has shown flashes of brilliance in 2025 but a lack of consistency between starts. Let's see how today plays out.

Game 54 Thread: May 26 @ Guardians, 3p

Yoshinobu Yamamoto (5-3, 1.86) vs. Gavin Williams (4-2. 3.94).

Finally, we are out of the nationally-televised game spotlight, and I think that's a Groot thing for the Dodgers, who seem to put their worst foot forward on the big stage. Sunday's debacle in New York was another example of this, with the 3-1 defeat showing an inept offense throughout the game, not to mention four errors defensively.

The worst error of which came from Max Muncy, who cost us a run Sunday and almost cost us the game on Friday against the Mets as well (obstructing the vision of the runner on third on a sacrifice fly). Muncy is now batting .210 with a woeful .670 OPS, and it's time to really consider options at third base. I'm sure Muncy is looking at the recent departures of Austin Barnes and Chris Taylor and has a keen understanding that we can't wait much longer for him to play to his potential. It would be awesome to see him turn it around on this road trip, starting with tonight's game in Cleveland.

Game 53 Thread: May 26 @ Mets, 4p

Landon Knack (2-1, 6.17) vs. Kodai Senga (4-3, 1.43).

The last time we faced the Mets in a key series (2024 NLCS), Tommy Edman stepped up big time to help us earn the series victory. In this 2025 regular-season series, Edman is 2-for-7 with a run scored. We're going to need a lot more from Edman, batting .237 on the year with a .758 OPS, especialy given the mediocrity of the bottom of our lineup--especially since we're trotting Landon Knack out there today, ahead of a beleaguered bullpen staff.

Let's go, Tommy Tanks!

Game 52 Thread: May 24 @ Mets, 4p

How I watched last night's game, rather than AppleTV+.

Gonsolin vs Peterson.

At least I can actually watch tonight's game!

Game 51 Thread: May 23 @ Mets, 4p

Tonight's opposing pitcher.

Clayton Kershaw (0-0, 11.25) vs. Griffin Canning (5-1, 2.47).

The Mets, the highest-payroll team (active 26-man roster) in MLB, have spent a lot of money to put their formidable offensive lineup on the field. $765M-man Juan Soto is only batting .243 but has a .804 OPS (131 OPS+), and he's not even the second-best OPS+ player on his team: Francisco Lindor has a 136 OPS+. And then there's Pete Alonso, who is having a resurgent year with a league-leading 16 doubles, 9 HR, batting .292 with a .931 OPS (165 OPS+).

Honestly, what is a scrappy, small-market team like the Dodgers supposed to do?

Game 50 Thread: May 21 vs. Diamondbacks, 7p

Dustin May vs. Corbin Burnes.

The Dodgers have a chance to end this homestand with two wins (or four wins in nine games), which is not great but I'd take it. I'd like to give May flowers, but he's going to have to pitch better than his last couple of outings to get us a win.

Game 49 Thread: May 20 vs. Diamondbacks, 7p

Yamamoto vs. Nelson.

Surely this freefall has to stop soon, right?

Game 48 Thread: May 19 vs. Diamondbacks, 7p

Landon Knack (2-1, 5.89) vs. Brandon Pfaadt (6-3, 3.73).

Not feeling it, after that sweep by the lowly Angels this weekend. What a train wreck.

Game 47 Thread: May 18 vs. Angels, 1p

Tony Gonsolin (2-0, 2.81) vs. Yusei Kikuchi (0-4, 3.72).

With today's news that Chris Taylor has been designated for assignment, joining Austin Barnes as long-time Dodgers who have been cut from the roster, will the Dodgers finally have a back-end of the lineup that can bat over .200?

Given we've lost both games to the Angels this series, that would be very welcome.

Game 46 Thread: May 17 vs. Angels, 6p

Well, at least I saw a Shohei Ohtani HR last night. (cries)

Clayton Kershaw vs. Tyler Anderson.

Welcome back, Clayton!

Game 45 Thread: May 16 vs. Angels, 7p

Dustin May (1-3, 4.08) vs. Jack Kochanowicz (2-5, 5.23)

Dustin May takes the mound for the Dodgers, one night after pounding the Sacramento Athletics, 19-2. But tonight, the big news is that the prodigal son SoSG Sax returns to Dodger Stadium for the first time this month (and only the second time this year!). Let me know if you'll be there as well!

Game 44 Thread: May 15 vs. Sacramento Athletics, 7p

Matt Sauer (1-0, 1.54) vs. Osvaldo Bido (2-3, 4.75).

Dalton Rushing debuts tonight for the Dodgers.

That is all.

Game 43 Thread: May 14 vs. Sacramento Athletics, 7p

Yoshinobu Yamamoto (4-3, 1.80) vs. Gunnar Hoglund (1-0, 2.38).

With the Dodgers' pitching squad now barren (Roki Sasaki to the IL Tuesday), all that's left from the Dodgers' Opening Day starting rotation seems to be Yoshinobu Yamamoto.

What the hell is going on here?

Game 42 Thread: May 13 vs. Sacramento Athletics, 7p

Landon Knack (2-0, 4.61) vs. TBD Jeffrey Springs (4-3, 4.81).

The Dodgers return home after their 6-4 roadtrip, the longest roadtrip of the year. Given the team is only 12-11 on the road, I suppose that's a minor victory?

But now that we're facing Sacramento (21-20) for the first time ever, let's make damn sure that it's a win tonight.

Scoreboard Watching: May 12, 2025

Angels @ Padres, 6.40p. Yusei Kikuchi (0-4, 3.83) vs. Michael King (4-1, 2.22). Not a lot of hope that the Angels can pull off this game, let alone this series--but who knows. Dodgers sit a game ahead of the Padres at start of play today.

Diamondbacks @ Giants, 6.45p.. Merrill Kelly (3-2, 4.09) vs. Justin Verlander (0-2, 4.50). Verlander has 262 career wins and at his 2025 pace, he...will not ever reach 300 wins. Giants are three games behind the Dodgers, in third place in the NL West, at start of play.

Game 41 Thread: May 11 @ Diamondbacks, 1p

Tony Gonsolin (1-0, 4.09) vs. Zac Gallen (3-4, 4.37).

Finally, the last game of a ten-game road trip. The Dodgers are a perfectly mediocre 11-11 on the road this year, which is why we're in a tie for first place going into play today (with the Padres). Hopefully we can go relax in a pool for tomorrow's off-day.

Game 40 Thread: May 10 @ Diamondbacks, 5p

Dustin May vs. Corbin Burnes.

Burnes was one of the highly coveted free-agent pitchers this offseason, and he spurned the Giants, Orioles, and others by choosing to go to Arizona, where he already had a family home. After signing a six-year, $210Mdeal with the Snakes, Burnes is off to a solid beginning to the 2025 season (28 Ks), but had his last start skipped with a cortisone injection to his right shoulder. We'll see if the Dodgers can take advantage.

Post-Game 39 Thread: Ohtani Bat Flips with Three-Run HR in Ninth

DODGERS 14, DIAMONDBACKS 11

I mean, look at that bat flip. That's all I have to say about that amazing comeback victory.

Oh, and maybe the fact that Michael Conforto wasn't in yesterday's starting lineup (he did score a run in the ninth, reaching through a HBP. But he lined out PH for Chris Taylor in the eighth as well, dropping his BA to .134). Hmmmmmmmmm....

Here's another great view, from the field perspective:

Game 39 Thread: May 9 @ Diamondbacks, 6.40p

Michael Conforto, concrete block anchor.

Roki Sasaki (1-1, 3.86) vs. Eduardo Rodriguez (1-3, 5.92)

The Dodgers are only 4-3 on this road trip, with three games left to play against the Diamondbacks. We had a shot at a rally last night in the eighth inning, down 5-2 and poised for more, until Michael Conforto grounded into a double play with men at the corners and one out.

I konw that Conforto doesn't feel any better about this than I do, but going 0-for-3 with that key GIDP, he is now batting .135 with a .503 OPS (47 OPS+, which means he's 53% worse than an average player). We have to stop the madness of trotting Conforto out in this lineup. We can't carry Conforto and then also hope to have Max Muncy, James Outman, and possibly Kike Hernandez surrounding him with further sub-mediocrity.

photo: Brandon Sloter / Getty Images

Game 38 Thread: May 8 @ Diamondbacks, 6.40p

Yoshinobu Yamamoto (4-2, 0.90) vs. Brandon Pfaadt (5-2, 3.79).

Yoshi has been awesome so far this year, named National League pitcher of the month for March / April 2025..

As for the Diamondbacks' starter? Well, he's Pfaadt, he's Pfaadt. You know it. You know.

Game 37 Thread: May 7 @ Marlins, 1.40p

TBD Landon Knack (1-0. 7.27) vs. Valente Bellozo (0-2, 4.97)

The Marlins might be a bunch of clown(fish), but I suppose it was inevitable that they win at least one game this series. Hopefully that's all they get. But with Teoscar Hernandez and Tommy Edman both on the IL, can we count on Max Muncy (0-for-2 yesterday, .176 BA on the year) or Michael Conforto (0-for-3 yesterday, .142 BA on the year) to pick up the slack?

I'm not taking that bait.

Game 36 Thread: May 6 @ Marlins, 3.40p

Tony Gonsolin (1-0, 4.50) vs. Cal Quantrill (2-3, 8.10).

Great to have Tony Gonsolin back to help support the beleaguered starting rotation! We're 4-0 against the Marlins this year, so let's keep this feasting on fish thing going!

Game 35 Thread: May 5 @ Marlins, 3.40p

Hat tip to SoSG Orel for this nickname

Ben Casparius (3-0, 2.91) vs. Sandy Alcantara (2-3, 8.31).

Sany Alcantara won the Cy Young Award in 2022 and has been a solid pitcher...until this year, where something is definitely off. The Dodgers knocked him around last week (7 ER, 2.2 IP) to boost his ERA to 8.31. In that April 29 game, Jack Dreyer started for the Dodgers, and Matt Sauer got the victory after pitching five innings of one-run ball. Let's see if Ben Casparius can hold his own as well!

Game 34 Thread: May 4 @ Braves, 4p

Dustin May vs. Bryce Elder.

Amazingly, the Dodgers are on the verge of sweeping the Atlanta Braves in this series, beating back both a hungry Braves team forecasted to win the NL East in 2025, not to mention Mother Nature, who threw in a brutal rain delay on Friday (stopping the game after eight full frames before allowing the Dodgers to play the ninth and earn the 2-1 victory), followed by a 3+ hour rain delay on Saturday.

The Dodgers' 10-3 romp yesterday, punctuated by a three-run Freddie Freeman HR to center, was awesome. And that sets up today's game, where Dustin "Code Red" May has a chance to have the Dodgers start their 10-day, 10-game road trip with a 3-0 record. Let's go, Dustin!

Game 33 Thread: May 3 @ Braves, 4p

Sasaki vs Schwellenbach.

Sorry these have been so lame. I have had a lot on!

Game 32 Thread: May 2 vs Braves, 4p

Sorry, I forgot to post this Game Thread until it was way too late.