7.15 4p: Kershaw vs. Eflin 7.16 4p: Buehler vs. Velasquez 7.17 4p: Maeda vs. Pivetta 7.18 9.30a: Stripling vs. Nola
I didn't think we'd win two of three in Boston, but here we are. Much was made of the Los Angeles fans coming in force to Fenway Park this past weekend. Will we show up in Citizen's Bank Park as well, for four against the third-place Bryce Harpers?
7/12: Maeda vs. Rodriguez 7/13: Stripling vs. Sale 7/14: Ryu vs. Price all games, 4p PT
Nothing but doom and gloom for the Dodgers here. We dropped three of four against the Padres heading into the All-Star Break. We probably permanently jacked up Joc Pederson's swing thanks to his valiant, albeit unsuccessful, Home Run Derby entry. Clayton Kershaw took his second All-Star Game Loss on Tuesday. Walker Buehler gave up an earned run as well in that game. And Cody Bellinger and Max Muncy both 0-fered in two AB, amassing three strikeouts between them.
Perfect timing to go get stomped by last year's World Series winners, the Boston Red Sox.
The decline is real.
7.4 6p: Ryu vs. Lamet 7.5 7p: Kershaw vs. Lauer 7.6 7p: Maeda vs. Paddack 7.7 1p: Stripling vs. Lucchesi
Five consecutive walk-off victories at home! Apparently this is the first time since the 2004 A's. And all I can find is a music video entitled "Walk On". Oh well...
Happy Fourth of July, people!
Thu 6/27 5.30p: Buehler vs. Lambert Fri 6/28 5.30p: Ryu vs. Senzatela Sat 6/29 5.15p: Kershaw vs. Gray Sun 6.30 12n: Maeda vs. Gonzalez
Remember all that momentum we had, from three straight walkoff wins against Colorado at home? Well in Arizona, The Dodgers were lucky to get away with one win, but still dropped the series and looked like crap along the way. And here's a sample of some of the Dodgers' worst:
Pederson: 1-for-5 with 2Ks, DNP, 1-for-4 with a K. He is batting .232. Hernandez: 1-for-3 with a K, 1-for-4, 0-for-3 with a K. He is batting .212. Barnes: 0-for-2 with a K, 0-for-2 with 2Ks, 0-for-0. He is batting .214.
These are not good numbers. You've gotta think that in Coors Field, these should improve.
They'd better, or this NL West lead is going to dissolve, real quick.
Fri 6.21 7p: Walker Buehler vs. Marquez Sat 6.22 4.15p: Hyun-Jin Ryu vs. Lambert Sun 6.23 1p: Kenta Maeda vs. Senzatela
Following a harrowing escape in Thursday's 9-8 victory over the Giants and Madison Bumgarner, saved only by a killer throw to nab Stephen Vogt at third for a game-saving force out, we're able to catch our breath and realize that the Dodgers just dispatched our rivals with three straight victories in which we scored 9 runs to win. Let's celebrate! Hence the video up top. We're 6-2 on this homestand with three more to play against Colorado.
Mon 6.17: Kenta Maeda vs. Beede
Tue 6.18: Clayton Kershaw vs. Anderson
Wed 6.19: Rich Hill vs. Pomeranz
Thu 6.20: Walker Buehler Julio Urias vs. Bumgarner
It's going to be difficult to improve upon our last four-game series (three of four at home vs. the Cubs, spoiled only by a game-winning ninth-inning Anthony Rizzo HR in Saturday's game). At 48-24, the Dodgers are at least six wins ahead of any other NL team, so what more could we ask of them? Kenley Jansen pitching to form? Starting pitchers not having a shaky first inning? Offense showing up consistently throughout the series?
At this point I'm just nitpicking. We're 10.5 games up on Colorado and Arizona, and a stunning 16.5 games up on the Giants (the largest lead in the league).
But I'll be there Thursday to watch Walker Buehler Julio Urias duel that other guy, just to make sure:
6/10 7p: Hyun-Jin Ryu vs. Canning 6/11 7p: Kenta Maeda vs. Peña
Series win against the Giants in San Francisco! Max Muncy talking smack to Ashley Madison! And Joe Kelly pitching an inning of no-run, 3 K ball (Saturday)! What could possibly go wrong?
Gotta love this summer so far. Part 2 coming next.
Mon 6.3 6.30p: Walker Buehler vs. Ray Tue 6.4 6.30p: Hyun-Jin Ryu vs. Clarke Wed 6.5 12.30p: Kenta Maeda vs. Duplantier
Count it out, count it out. 1-2-3-4-5-6 wins in our latest 6-1 homestand, bringing the Dodgers to an amazing 41-19 record on the year, at a time when no other team in the NL exceeds 34 wins. We have a nine-game lead in the West (over the Rockies, who have won eight in a row). The host Snakes are 11 games back, at .500. No getting snakebit here, please.
Fri 5.31 7p: Kenta Maeda vs. Arrieta Sat 6.1 7p: Clayton Kershaw vs. Eflin Sun 6.2 1p: Rich Hill vs. Pivetta
It may not exactly be Harper's Folly, what with the Phillies in first place over Atlanta by three games in the NL East. But the Dodgers' decision to pass on off-season gem Bryce Harper definitely kept us away from long-term (13-year, $330M) constraints, and possibly also kept us from short-term disappointments as well (espn.com just re-graded the off-season transactions, and Bryce Harper's acquisition by Philadelphia earned a C- grade):
There are a lot of positives here as the Phillies are in first place, attendance is up more than 9,000 fans per game and Harper has played every game. His defense has been vastly better than last season and he has hit three of the 30 longest home runs of the season. On the other hand, he is hitting .243/.364/.475 with 10 home runs -- a relatively soft number considering 69 players had already hit 10 before Harper reached double digits Wednesday -- and was tied for the major league lead in strikeouts entering Wednesday. He ranked 84th in the majors in wOBA and the Phillies didn't give Harper $330 million to be the 84th-best hitter in the game.
Holy shit, it's a blockquote! We haven't used one of those for a while now!
So maybe Harper is feeling like Los Angeles is...a missed connection?
Anyway, this weekend we get a chance to see Harper again, and while we won't be trotting out our own offseason acquisition (five years, $60M; D-grade), staph-infected A.J. Pollock, we seem to be rolling pretty well nonetheless: most wins in the majors; best record in the NL; 8.5-game lead on the Padres. Let's keep it rolling.
Fri 5.24 4p: Walker Buehler vs. TBD Sat 5.25 4p: Hyun-Jin Ryu vs. Musgrove Sun 5.26 10.30a: Kenta Maeda vs. Archer
The Pirates are coming off a losing series at home vs. Colorado. Okay, that's bad (salvaged by a 14-6 win Thursday). What's worse? Well, the Dodgers are coming off a disastrous meltdown in the second game against Tampa Bay, in which Dylan Floro and Caleb Ferguson joined forces to collectively shit the bed (not that they were in the same bed, per se). This came one night after Pedro Baez was hit by a wicked comebacker, expelling him from the game and now he's out indefinitely.
We ended up splitting that series against the Rays, but we fly into Pittsburgh with the weaknesses of our bullpen unveiled for everyone to see. So sure, we still hold the best record in the NL (32-18). But it's a worry.
It doesn't matter why we're known. We're just known.
Tues 5/14: Kershaw vs. Paddack Wed 5/15: Maeda vs. Strahm Both games at 7p
It's good to be done with Gerardo Parra, who torched us for a game-winning grand slam on Saturday, and then came back Sunday to break up Hyun-Jin Ryu's no-hitter bid with one out in the eighth. That guy has always killed us.
So now we move on to see the pesky Manny Machado, who got to Clayton Kershaw last time they met, with a two-run HR to start the game going (the Dodgers ended up winning, 4-3). The Padres, who started out the season hot, have regressed to third place (behind the Diamondbacks, 3.5 GB), four games back in the NL West. Will the Padres claw their way back into the race? I'd say it's a longshot.
Oh yeah, and there's this, on Wednesday:
Thu 5/9 7p: Rich Hill vs. Corbin Fri 5/10 7p: Kenta Maeda vs. An Sanchez Sat 5/11 6p: Walker Buehler vs. Scherzer Sun 5/12 1p: Hyun-Jin Ryu vs. Strasburg
The husk of the team once known as the Washington Nationals, now gutted with the loss of Bryce Harper, sit at 14-22 with the second-worst record in the National League. Given our opponent, this might be the series where we extend our three-game lead over Arizona by starting three good arms as well as Kenta Maeda (whose 4.66 ERA is not as bad as Walker Buehler's, but his 3-2 record sits at the bottom of the four).
Some might say this is pessimistic, coming off of a great sweep of Atlanta earlier this week, capped by a 9-4 spanking last night. Joe Kelly even pitched a full inning with 2 Ks and no runs scored. I'm a bad liar, you say? Oh, I've been askin' for / Oh, I've been askin' for problems, problems, problems.
Fri 7p: Clayton Kershaw vs. Lauer Sat 5.30p: Rich Hill vs. Lucchesi Sun 1p: Kenta Maeda vs. Margevicius
After dropping two of three in Birdshit Park, the Dodgers go to warmer climes to face the Padres, surprisingly +4 games over .500 and only 1.5 games behind the Dodgers, in third place. Manny Machado has been busy pulling hijinks, and Fernando Tatis Jr. is on the IL. But San Diego is still 7-3 over their last ten (along with the Snakes, who have moved up to second place in the division).
So let's roll, Dodgers! Are you ready to let go?
I'm kind of disturbed by this video, though.
Mon 4/29 6.45p: Kenta Maeda (3-2, 5.20, 25K) vs. Jeff Samardzija (2-1. 3.00, 24K) Tue 4/30 6.45p: Walker Buehler (2-0, 5.25, 18K) vs. Drew Pomeranz (1-2, 3.65, 28K) Wed 5/1 6.45p: Hyun-Jin Ryu (3-1, 2.96, 33K) vs. Ashley Madison (1-4, 4.30, 35K)
Fresh off a sweep of the Pirates at home, the Dodgers head north into the belly of the beast to face three starting pitchers with a decent amount of strikeouts, but not a lot of wins to show for it. Still, the team is compelling enough to have stolen Farhan Zaidi to join them, despite the fact that the Giants will lose 180 games over the next two years.
The Giants' -20 run differential is second-worst in the NL only to the Marlins; their farm teams are barren; and it took the team 26 games to score a run in their first inning. Oh yeah, and seagulls still shit all over their park. Let's hope the Dodgers can get out of here with some wins, and without any histoplasmosis.
Tue 4/23 5p: Kenta Maeda vs. Jose Quintana Wed 4/24 5p: Walker Buehler vs. Cole Hamels Thu 4/25 11.30a: Ross Stripling vs. TBD
Somehow, the Cubs are 10-10, and we have played four more games than they have this year. Some desk research reveals that, unlike the Cubs' cushy schedule so far (with four days off and one postponed game vs. the Angels), the Dodgers have been forced to keep their nose to the grindstone, and they've responded by mashing all the way. Taking three of four in Milwaukee this past weekend (including an incredible Cody Bellinger performance Sunday!), the Dodgers are now six games above .500--and this includes that six-game losing streak when we couldn't get anything right. Imagine if we had just gone .500 over those six games; we'd be 18-6!
I don't recall Wrigley Field being "friendly confines" for the Dodgers (we went 1-2 last year there, including a walk-off, tenth-inning loss). The Cubs have won seven of nine, keeping pace with our winning seven of our last eight. And we haven't fared well against NL Central teams. This series should be a dogfight. So let's get some inspiration, please (note Russell Martin is in the house for this clip!):
Thu 4/18 5p: Julio Urias vs. Zach Davies Fri 4/19 5p: Ross Stripling vs. Jhoulys Chacin Sat 4/20 4p: Hyun-Jim Ryu vs. TBD Sun 4/21 11a: Clayton Kershaw vs. Brandon Woodruff
Since we licked our wounds by taking a lickin' to the Reds in a series sweep, we've recovered from the prior series loss against the Milwaukee Brewers. So now we face them again, with their slugger Christian Yelich on a tear, he with his nine HR on the year to lead the National League.
But wait, don't we have a slugger of our own, with nine HR to his name as well? Cody Bellinger returns (actually, he started Wednesday and went 1-for-3 with a single and a walk), after sitting for a game and a half with a bruised knee. Well, we're laughing like it didn't hurt / I'm in the dirt, I'll make it work though. We won Monday (the game where Belli got hit), and then substitute Alex Verdugo had his first three-hit game on Tuesday, and now Bellinger is back.
Yelich. Bellinger. Last year's NLCS opponents. Both teams leading their respective divisions. This looks to be a good one.
I'm going to go stock up on groceries for this weekend.
Mon 7p: Clayton Kershaw vs. Luis Castillo (1-1. 0.92) Tue 7p: Kenta Maeda (2-1, 4.76) vs. Tyler Mahle (0-0, 0.82) Wed 12n: TBD vs. Sonny Gray (0-2, 2.03)
I guess I should have used last week's series thread photo for this series, given we're seeing the Reds and everything. But I suppose I'm just too surprised that we actually won a game Sunday, our first win in seven games against NL Central teams, who seem to be more formidable opponents than the cushy NL West teams we've played. Amazingly, the Dodgers' plummet to Earth still has us only 2.0 GB the league-leading Padres (I can't believe I just typed those last three words in succession), so it's not inconceivable that we could find ourselves back in first before the end of this homestand Wednesday. (The Padres host the 4-12 Rockies for a quick two-game two-step.)
This series also gives us the opportunity to see an inevitable video montage of Yasiel Puig and Matt Kemp on Monday night; after all, the Dodgers gave passed-ball king Yasmani Grandal a video tribute on Friday. Both Puig and Kemp were so instrumental to the Dodgers' 2018 run, not to mention the Dodgers' teams over the past years, that it's inevitable to be a little nostalgic. Let's hope A.J. Pollock, whose batting average has slipped from .324 to .242 over the past 8 games (excluding Sunday's game, in which he went 2-for-5), continues to get back on track and make us forget about these two outfielders.
Oh, and we've got some new guy making his first start of the year on Monday night, Jackie Robinson Day. Good luck to him!
Monday 4/8 4.45p: Hyun-Jin Ryu (2-0, 2.08) vs. Miles "I'm not Spider-Man" Mikolas (0-1, 7.20) Tuesday 4/9 4.45p: Ross Stripling (0-0, 2.31) vs. Dakota Hudson (0-1, 5.40) Wednesday 4/10 4.45p: Kenta Maeda (2-0, 3.09) vs. Jack Flaherty (0-0, 3.86) Thursday 4/11 10:15a: Walker Buehler (1-0, 6.75) vs. Michael Wacha (0-0, 1.54)
These are honestly the most bizarre game times I have seen in years. What the hell is going on here?!
I mean, besides the Dodgers going 8-2 on the season, and now 2-2 in games in which Joe Kelly appears (Kelly actually picked up the win Sunday in Colorado, with his ERA lowering to 14.40 on the year). The Dodgers have mashed at least one HR in all 10 games, all of which have been against the super-cush NL West. Now we head to St. Louis for four against our first non-NL West opponent of the season, the 4-5 Cardinals. Let's keep on mashing, Dodgers!
Fri 4.5 1p: Kenta Maeda (1-0, 4.05) vs. Tyler Anderson (0-1, 9.00) Sat 4.6 5p: Walker Buehler (0-0, 15.00) vs. Jon Gray (0-1, 4.05) Sun 4.7 5.30p: Julio Urias (0-0, 0.00) vs. Chad "Jerome" Bettis (0-1, 9.53)
The NL West-leading, 5-2 Dodgers would be 7-0 if not for Joe Kelly's missteps--and maybe it's the googly-eyed glasses, but I'm pretty convinced that he's going to recover from these issues, boos understandable. So we move into Colorado with a decent amount of steam, coming off of two series wins in our first homestand of the year. Will it be a rocky road there? With the mile-high ERAs of those opposing starters, I doubt it.
Friday 7p: Ross Stripling vs. Robbie Ray Saturday 6p: Kenta Maeda vs. Zack Godley Sunday 1p: Walker Buehler vs. Luke Weaver
It's going to be hard to top yesterday's Opening Day extravaganza. But since they've painted "Opening Week" on the field, we may as well keep up the festivities.
Sax is going to be out of town this weekend, so I'll need you guys to keep the comments going while I'm gone.
