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.

Game 31 Thread: Apr 30 vs. Marlins, 12p

Gonsolin (2025 debut) vs. Quantrill (2-2, 7.83).

The Dodgers have a chance for a fish sweep! Welcome back, Catman!

Game 30 Thread: April 29 vs. Marlins, 7p

Tommy Tanks, nails again on April 28, 2025.

TBD vs. Sandy Alcantara (2-2, 6.56).

Another bullpen game for the Dodgers, right after an extra-inning effort in which we won 7-6 (Tommy Edman with the game-winning, two-RBI walkoff single), but used five arms to get that victory. So who knows how we'll go with a series of ghost pitchers and overworked arms? Yikes.

Welcome back to first place, Dodgers!

Game 29 Thread: April 28 vs. Marlins, 7p

Dustin May (1-1, 3.68) vs. Edward Cabrera (0-1, 6.14).

Welcome back, former Dodger first base coach Clayton McCullough (now the manager of the Miami Marlins). The Marlins are not doing well this year, suffering from sloppy defense... just like the Dodgers! So maybe it's a McCullough thing.

Gotta give some love to Andy Pages, who went 10-for-12 in the series against the Pirates, including a hone run, three doubles, and four RBI. This output alone lifted his batting average from .183 to .277, and his OPS from .650 to .861 (Pages is now sitting at a 146 OPS+, which is higher than Teoscar Hernandez (145), and is absolutely amazing).

And then, we have Max Muncy, who is at a 55 OPS+. Maybe we can trade him to the Marlins for Sandy Alcantara (whom we'll see tomorrow!).

Game 28 Thread: April 27 vs. Pirates, 1p

Glasnow vs. Falter.

Last night's comeback victory was a pleasant surprise, right? but if we have to depend upon PH Kiké Hernandez home runs (which is the only thing he hits this year; still, better than Max Muncy), we are in trouble.

It's the Pirates, guys. Win this damn series.

Game 27 Thread: April 26 vs Pirates, 6p

Sasaki vs Keller.

My god, this run of bad games is miserable.

Game 26 Thread: April 25 vs. Pirates, 7p

Yoshinobu Yamamoto vs. TBD.

It's fitting to use this image and for this series, because frankly, the Dodgers' performace is absolutely the Pitts. Since going 8-0 to start the season, the Dodgers are actually a pedestrian 8-9, dropping four of their last six series (and barely squeaking past the Rangers, and then sweeping the Rockies).

It's all very disappointing, but the problems persist throughout the lineup. Our starting pitching is ravaged, with Tyler Glasnow befelled by both rain and cramps (I'm not kidding), and $182M signee Blake Snell unable to make it through a rehab period. Our bullpen, already incredibly overused only 1/6 of the way through the season, has given up leads late in games with chilling regularity.

And our bats are also spotty. Shohei Ohtani has returned from paternity leave with a newfound strikeout-prone swing. Mookie Betts, who went 3-for-5 against the Cubs Wednesday, is batting an uncharacteristically low .235.

On the other hand, the characteristic weaknesses in this lineup...are unfortunately playing right to form. Michael Conforto is batting .197. Max Muncy is batting .178 and looks totally lost out there, posting a career-high 36.5% strikeout rate. Andy Pages is batting .183.

And Austin "Free Pass" Barnes, with his career-low 9.1% defensive caught stealing rate, is batting .174. I honestly don't even know why he has a roster spot, even as a backup catcher.

The Dodgers are in third place in the NL West and look incredibly old and weak. We can't take another 137 games of this crap.

Game 25 Thread: April 23 @ Cubs, 4p

TBD vs. Matthew Boyd (1-2. 2.01).

After one of the most crushing losses we've had so far this year, the Dodgers will try to pick our beleaguered relievers off the floor and salvage a series split in today's game. There were soooooooo many mistakes yesterday: Dustin May giving up seven runs and ceding a 3-0 lead in the first inning; Andy Pages and Teoscar Hernandez' misadventures in the field (and Tommy Edman also gave up a RBI triple, to be fair); Alex Vesia giving up a two-run jack to narrow our comeback 10-7 lead; Tanner Scott, needing only one more out, giving up a game-tying HR in the bottom of the ninth. My god, what a disaster.

The Dodgers slipped back into second place in the NL West by a game and honestly don't look that good. Mookie Betts went 0-for-4 and is batting a woeful .231 this year, and Shohei Ohtani had three Ks in 4 AB. But that bottom of the order, anchored by Max Muncy and Kiké Hernandez, is simply putrid. We have to get Muncy out of the lineup. He is an automatic out.

Sigh.

Game 24 Thread: April 22 @ Cubs, 4.40p

Dustin May (1-1, 1.06) vs. Shota Imanaga (2-1, 2.22).

Start the game, I know a carrot top
Who didn't pitch last year, but now he just won't stop
And we can watch Shohei, and then see Muncy K
And all...
that...
jazz