Thu 30 7p: White vs. Musgrove Fri 1 7p: Gonsolin vs. Snell Sat 2 4.15p: Anderson vs. Darvish Sun 3 1p: Kershaw vs. Gore
Dodgers meet the Padres for four games at home. Let's do this.
Both teams have injuries keeping major pieces out of their lineups. But it's the top two teams in the division, so the games are still important, even in July.
GO DODGERS!
Mon 27: Tyler Anderson vs. Kuhl Tue 28: Clayton Kershaw vs. Freeland Wed 29: Julio Urias vs Márquez All games 5.40p
After beating the Braves in a hard-fought rubber match on Sunday, notching the series victory (not to mention the Dodgers' first extra-inning win all year!), the Dodgers depart Atlant having left behind a lot of tears.
Freddie Freeman left some tears on the field, as well as at Friday's pre-game press conference. Daniel Hudson unfortunately left a tear on the field as well, tearing his left ACL late in Saturday's game. So I sincerely hope that our next stop on this road trip, to Colorado, is tear-free.
The Dodgers are now 5-1 on this roadtrip, which is a nice turnaround from a pretty bad June (12-10). Let's keep it rolling, Dodgers!
Fri 24 4.15p: Urias vs. Anderson Sat 25 4.15p: Heaney vs. Fried Sun 26 4p: Gonsolin vs. Strider
Five home runs on Thursday! 26 total runs in the three-game sweep! Max Muncy with his first three-hit game of the season!
Yes, it's cause for joyous celebration. Except that this was against the Reds, 0-7 against the Dodgers this year and dead last in the entire National League. So the real test of this roadtip comes with these three games in Atlanta, whom we beat twice at home earlier this season (ironically, right after the Cincinnati sweep, making me question the creativity of the MLB scheduling team).
Max Fried on Saturday is no joke: 7-2 with a 2.77 ERA. And the Braves have won 18 of 21 including three of four over the visiting Giants this week, while the Dodgers have been basically playing .500 ball for almost the last month, save this Cincinnati series. On top of all that, the Dodgers' red hot 1B Freddie Freeman has already said his return to Atlanta will be emotional, especially with a ring ceremony on the weekend schedule.
Freddie will be shedding some tears. Hopefully Dodger fans will have some tears of joy this weekend, as well.
Tue 6.21 3.40p: Gonsolin vs. Mahle Wed 6.22 3.40p: Anderson vs. Castillo Thu 6.23 9.30a: Kershaw vs. Greene
A little premature to call the season (especially pre-All Star Break, and with the Dodgers in first place by a half-game). But on the other hand, dropping the last series to the Guardians evidenced how poor this team really is: a combined 5-for-34 with RISP. What's worse, everyone treats their at bats with a runner on base like they're playing beer-league softball: wild hacks out of the zone leading to strikeouts; impatient swings early in the count; lack of positional hitting to advance the runner (I'm looking at you, Will Smith).
It's absolutely awful to watch. Not that I did, after watching us drop our fifth extra-inning game on Friday night (Dodgers are 0-5 in extras). The Dodgers' hitting coaches, Brnt Brown and Robert Van Scoyoc, are simply not doing their job. The Dodgers need to learn how to knock some runs in rather than just swing for the fences (we had 29 strikeouts in the three games, including 13 on Sunday).
And with Mookie out with a cracked rib, I think this season may be over before we even get to the break. 25 more games to go until the break, including this nine-game road trip (Cincinnati, Atlanta, and Colorado). This road trip will tell all.
Fri 6.17 7p: Clayton Kershaw (4-1, 2.12) vs. Plesac (2-4, 4.70) Sat 6.18 4.15p: Julio Urias (3-6, 2.80) vs. Quantrill (4-3, 3.38) Sun 6.19 1p: TBD vs. Justin Bieber (Baby, Peaches, Love Yourself)
Two wins, and almost a no-hitter by Tyler Anderson, over the Angels earlier this week. But remember, this was a team that recently lost 14 in a row. And even with those wins, the Dodgers' idle Monday and Thursday still had us fall behind the first-place Padres, who swept the Cubs at Wrigley and now lead us by a half-game entering play today (Padres play the Rockies, so that's another three wins for San Diego).
The Cleveland Guardians' first visit to Dodger Stadium could present another series-winning opportunity for the snakebit Dodgers...if we can get Gamora of the same from Will Smith (a three-run HR on Wednesday) and Mookie Betts (a key insurance solo HR on Tuesday).
Cue up the Awesome Mix! This is happening!
Tue 6.14: Gonsolin vs. Syndergaard Wed 6.15: Anderson vs. Detmers both games 7p first pitch
Swept by the Giants. Chris Taylor bloodied at the left field wall. Mookie Betts, 1-for-his-last-22 and 2-for-his-last-31. Walker Buehler, out for eight weeks with elbow issues. Only one winning series in the last four series played (four wins in the last 13 games).
Oh yeah, and now we are TIED for the divisional lead with the Padres, who beat the Cubs Monday.
This Dodgers team is going nowhere, fast. Gone are the hopes for a major-league record win number. This team is either too old to handle the aggressive schedule, or lacking a sense of urgency to compete offensively, or just absolutely lost. Two games against the Angels aren't going to help much.
Sadness. Indeed.
Fri 6.10 7p: Walker Buehler vs. Junis Sat 6.11 4p: Julio Urias vs. TBD Sun 6.12 1p: TBD (Clayton Kershaw?) vs. Rodon
Hot off a series victory over the Chicago White Sox (which only came after a close 11-9 victory in the rubber match Thursday afternoon, in a game which had the Dodgers' win percentage at 6% at one point), the Dodgers go up to Birdshit Park for a weekend series againt the third-place Giants, 6.5 games back of first. The Dodgers certainly haven't looked good of late, dropping the last homestand 2-5 and then limping to the series victory at Comiskey Park.
Mookie Betts went 0-for-6 Thursday with 2 Ks and 9 LOB (egads!), and Justin Turner also had a 0-for-3 day with 2 BB and a K. But surprisingly, Max Muncy rejoined the lineup following a rehab stint in Rnacho Cucamonga, and he did great: 2-for-5 with 5 RBI, including a three-run HR, to lift his average to .159 (he's gaining on you, Bellinger!). So maybe there's hope for the Dodgers, with a resurgent batter with a penchant for deliveing balls to the ocean?
We've got two starters going who have notable this year for their short starts. And then we've got Clayton Kershaw pencilled in for his return off the IL on Sunday. So I'm still terrified with fear.
Tue 6.7 5p: Mitch White vs. Kopech Wed 6.8 5p: Tony Gonsolin vs. Cueto Thu 6.9 11a: Tyler Anderson vs. Cease
We may as well continue through the Pixar Inside Out characters, now that we limped to a putrid 2-5 homestand by dropping all three games to the Pirates, before stumbling to a split against the Mets. Oh sure, we took the first two games against a weakened NYM lineup. But in both Saturday and Sunday's game, the Dodgers gave up leads (4-1 and 2-1) in order to choke away a sweep and settle for a split.
I was there Saturday night to see Walker Buehler implode to his shortest start of his career (2.1 IP, 5 ER, 2 HR). The LAT's Dylan Hernandez blames Julio Urias' short start for Sunday's loss, but in actuality the overworked bullpen is also the by-product of a shortened spring training plus the way Andrew Friedman has constructed the lineup, as well as how Dave Roberts chooses to execute the moves. And so, Brusdar Graterol gave up a three-run HR on Saturday, and then was responsible for a blown save and three more earned runs in Sunday's loss.
And let's not forget the offending offense. Will "Slappy" Smith may have had a home run late yesterday, but his game-ended K with a runner in scoring position was almost fated; he shoudln't be batting cleanup with his woeful .227 average. Justin Turner and Cody Bellinger are both batting below .240 as well, and they combined to go 1-for-8 yesterday with two Ks. And Gavin Lux was 0-for-4 in the nine-hole.
The Mets were our first big test this year. We got a C grade, maybe a C+; and this is when they don't even have Max Scherzer or Jacob deGrom in their lineup. It was a pretty disgusting homestand. Will a day off, and some road games, snap this team out of it?
Thu Jun 2: Gonsolin vs. T Walker Fri Jun 3: Anderson vs. Bassitt Sat Jun 4: Buehler vs. Peterson Sun Jun 5: Urias vs. TBD All games 7p except Sunday 6/5 @ 1p
After the bedshitting that was getting swept at home by the lowly Pittsburgh Pirates (winners of five out of six games this year), the Dodgers should be thoroughly embarrassed. Especially the offense, whose situational hitting absolutely stunk (a combined 6-for-28 with RISP); the baserunning, with runners getting thrown out trying to pop-up slide (Gavin Lux), or stretching for an extra base in vain (Chris Taylor), or getting picked off (so many people I can't list them all), or not tagging up properly and getting thrown out at home (again, Gavin Lux). We were awful for that series.
And our reward is now hosting the best team in the National League, the Mets, who are getting it done despite injuries to their top starters Jacob deGrom and Max Scherzer. They've got players stepping up in the moment, not cowering under the bed.
And meanwhile, we just sucked. Swinging at first pitches when Pirate pitchers were wavering. Blowing saves that negated comebacks. Spotting the Pirates four runs before the seats were even warm.
Oh, I'm pissed off. This Pirates series was f'ing embarrassing.
Get your shit together, Dodgers!
Mon 5.30 7p: Buehler vs. Thompson Tue 5.31 7p: Urias vs. TBD Wed 6.1 5p: White vs. Quintana
Oh sure, a four-game sweep of the Diamondbacks (punctuated by a 3-1 victory on Sunday), leading to an 8-2 record on the longest road trip of the season, should be cause for celebration. Except that four of those wins came at the hands of the Diamondbacks (against whom we are 9-2 this season), and we failed to put away sweeps against both the sub-.500 Phillies and the sub-.500 Nationals on this same road trip. We probably should have gone 10-0, frankly. So it's hard to get super-excited when the competition is so poor.
Meanwhile, this series opens up with the Pirates (who won the series in Pittsburgh), before we get four against the Mets, the first real team we've seen in a while. The secret to earning a winning homestand probably rests upon a strong outing against the Pirates this series.
Oh, and to add insult to injury: I had tickets to Monday's game, to see Walker Buehler. And I can't go (my father is going to use the tickets, which is good). So yeah, I'm salty. Whoopee.
Thu 5.26 6.40p: White vs. Castellanos Fri 5.27 6.40p: Gonsolin vs. Bumgarner Sat 5.28 4.15p: TBD vs. M Kelly Sun 5.29 1.10p: T Anderson vs. TBD
This series, the last leg of a ten-game road trip, starts with Mitch White. White's last start was not so great (2.1 IP, 3 ER), and this very short outing vs. Philadelphia burdened the relief corps. Can White, in the opener, not cast a long shadow over the rest of the series?
Hoping we can rebound after dropping yet another final game in a series, preventing a sweep (Dodgers are 4-2 on this road trip).
And in other news: Sax placed two bets on the Dodgers last week, winning on both the Monday and Tuesday games. I didn't place a bet on Wednesday. And we lost. (SoSG Dusty blames me for the loss.)
Mon 5.23 4p: Tyler Anderson vs. Avon Tue 5.24 4p: Buehler vs. Gray Wed 5.25 1p: Urias vs. Fedde
After Max Muncy's horrible showing in Sunday's game vs. the Phillies, I felt the need for the Dodgers--and myself--to put my money where my mouth is. So let's go.
Fri 5.20 4p: Urias vs. R Suarez Sat 5.21 3p: TBD vs. Nola Sun 5.22 10.30a: Gonsolin vs. Eflin
Remember last week, when the Phillies came into town and spanked us in three out of four games (the Dodgers avoiding a sweep only when Gavin Lux came through for an unlikely walkoff win)? Well now we are back in their house, except this time we only have two starters named for a three-game series. So I'm not expecting much brotherly love this weekend.
The Dodgers start the weekend only 1.5 games ahead of San Diego (who took two of three from the Phillies this week).
Mon 5.16 7p: Gonsolin vs. Bumgarner Tue 5.17 12p: TBD vs. M Kelly Tue 5.17 7p: T Anderson vs. TBD Wed 5.18 7p: Buehler vs. Davies
The walk-off victory on Sunday afternoon was great, especially given the rally came with two out off the bats of the struggling Cody Bellinger and Gavin Lux. But that doesn't change the fact that the Dodgers lost 5 of 7 against Pennsylvania teams in their last two series, including almost getting swept by the Phillies at home for the first time since 1985.
We were fortunate to prevail on Sunday. We don't really have much of a rotation at this point though, and our bullpen was horrible for three of the four games against Philadelphia. So let's see if we have anything left in the tank for Arizona, since we know how this went last time (hint: it wasn't good).
Thu 5/12 7p: Anderson vs. Wheeler Fri 5/13 7p: Kershaw vs. Gibson Sat 5/14 7p: Buehler vs. R Suárez Sun 5/15 1p: UrÃas vs. Nola
Eight games. Seven days.
Yes, that's what this hellish homestand has in store for the Dodgers, who return from Pittsburgh with their tail between their legs after dropping two of three to the lowly Bucs. Sure, a 4-2 road trip doesn't sound all that bad. But the Dodgers' offense looked positively awful for a lot of that series @ PNC Park: 0-for-5 with RISP on Monday; then 1-for-7 with RISP on Wednesday. And both of those games were losses.
Max Muncy (0-for-3 on Wednesday) is batting .138. Justin Turner, who had a breakout game on Tuesday, is batting .194 (0-for-3 Wednesday). And Cody Bellinger (0-for-4 Wednesday) is barely over Mendoza at .206.
And yet, Doc Roberts insists on putting them together in the lineup for two of the three games in Pittsburgh, as if they were eighth-grade girls at a Loyola High semi-formal. We have to at least sit one of them, or break up the string of badness. Because the way they are batting now, they pose abysses in the lineup that turn run-scoring rallies into missed opportunities.
After this series, the homestand continues with four games against Arizona (including a doubleheader). The Dodgers start play on Thursday nursing a 1.5 game lead on the Padres and a two-game lead on the Giants. Would be nice to gain some ground against the sub-.500 Phillies.
Sure, it was just the second game of a series against a sub-.500 team that the Dodgers should have won anyway. But Justin Turner going 4-for-5 with 4 RBI was a welcome jolt for the team, coming off a 5-1 series-opening loss that gave an opposing pitcher his first win since 2019.
Tonight, the Dodgers restored balance to the force, notching huge offensive outbursts in the third inning (batting around, for five runs) and the seventh inning (four more runs), to maroon the Pirates and take home a very lopsided victory. Now 20-8 with a run differential of +80, the Dodgers now are on pace for an absurd +463 run differential for the season. Is this possible? With Justin Turner, whose average rose to .200 with this game, potentially joining the Dodgers' hit parade, it certainly is.
That said, remember back to April 24, when Cody Bellinger won NL Player of the Week? Yeah, well since then, Bellinger is 6-for-43 with a .140 BA and a meager .422 OPS. So let's not get too far ahead of ourselves here.
In the meantime, let's celebrate Justin Turner's outing, and hope it's a portent of things to come.
Welcome back, JT! (What took you?!)
Rubber match tomorrow morning, party peoples: 9.30am. As a reminder, the game thread for this series @Pirates can be found here.
Mon 5/9 3.30p: Urias vs. Quintana Tue 5/10 3.30p: Gonsolin vs. Bry Wilson Wed 5/11 9.30a: TBD vs. TBD
A sweep of the Cubs this past weekend pushed the Dodgers' winning streak to six in a row, and now Los Angeles is 1.5 games clear of the Padres and four games ahead of the Giants and Rockies. But with Blake Treinen out through the All-Star Break, we really need to be racking up these wins against lowly NL Central teams (like the 11-16 Pirates) in May, before the Dodgers' opponents get a lot more challenging next month (Mets, White Sox, Giants, Angels, Braves).
Fri 5/6 11a: Tyler Anderson (2-0, 2.55) vs. TBD Sat 5/7 11a: Clayton Kershaw (3-0, 2.35) vs. Steele (1-3, 5.50) Sun 5/8 4p: Walker Buehler (3-1, 2.12) vs. Stroman (1-3, 5.13)
The Chicago Cubs are cold. 9-15 on the year and fourth in the NL Central (7.5 games behind the Brewers), the Cubs have not come out of the blocks strong. And speaking of cold: Friday is supposed to rain, and the weekend isn't supposed to get warmer than 60 degrees Fahrenheit.
The Cubs are coming off a two-game series loss to the cross-town White Sox, after being felled Wednesday by a bloop RBI single from former Dodger AJ Pollock. (As an aside, Pollock is batting .190 this season with a 33 OPS+; the Dodgers traded Pollock to the White Sox for Craig Kimbrel, who has a 1.35 ERA over 6.2 IP, and a 300 ERA+.)
The Cubs' leadoff bat of Alfonso Rivas has been their spark this year, matting .333 with a .919 OPS to lead the team. Seiya Suzuki is batting .250 in the two-hole. And 3B Patrick Wisdom has five HR this year (more than any other Dodger player).
But with the recent awakening of some of the Dodgers' bats in our Wednesday 9-1 victory, maybe we can bring the heat into the Windy City this weekend.
May the Fourth be with the Dodgers, who swept the Giants in two games with a resounding beatdown Wednesday, a 9-1 victory that snowballed with momentum like a Real Madrid Champions League playoff game.
Down 1-0 through three innings on a Brandon Crawford solo shot, the Dodgers got two back in the bottom of the fourth on successive RBI singles from Trea Turner and Will Smith. Then a Mookie Betts solo shot to lead off the bottom of the sixth.
Then a four-run seventh punctuated by the aforementioned Lux RBI single (Wilmer Flores fields the ball at first, and then has no play when Giants don't cover the bag), a Betts sac fly, and a Freddie Freeman triple. And then finally, a Max Muncy two-run HR to notch the final runs.
Unlike the Giants' penchant for running up the score, those last two runs were not a matter of gloating. Muncy has been off to a horrible start this season, as he probably is rehabilitating from that brutal injury from the end of last season. But his surprising 2-for-4 night (only his second multi-hit game this year) lifts Muncy's average to .151, the lowest of all Dodger regulars--so if Muncy can show some signs of life, that would be a huge boon.
All Dodgers starters reached base tonight. Only Chris Taylor didn't get a hit tonight.
Tony Gonsolin was fine, 5.0 IP with 3 H and 1 ER (1 BB, 5 Ks). The Dodgers used four bullpen pitchers to pitch four scoreless frames.
The Dodgers' 16-7 record is best in the National League, and one game ahead of San Diego in the NL West. And sure, the Giants had a depleted roster for this series, which probably contributed to the sweep. There's still 17 games to play here!
The Dodgers get a day off Thursday, and then a weekend series in Chicago, where it's scheduled to rain Friday and be in the 50s all weekend. Yikes.
Tues 5/3 7p: Urias (1-1. 2.50) vs. Rodon (3-0, 1.17).
Wed 5/4 7p: TBD Gonsolin (1-0, 1.59) vs. A Wood (2-1, 4.19).
When the Dodgers last saw the Giants, it looked something like this:
Ah yes. I remember it well, but I can watch those highlights again just to be pleasantly reminded.
(And by the way, when I debated with my brother-in-law (a Giants fan) about the Dodgers' profligate spending to date, and whether it has been worth it so far, I was able to remind him of two inescapable truths: 1) 2020 World Series Championship, and 2) 2021 NLDS Championship. Yes, there could, and should, be more. But yes, those two accomplishments are forever.)
Okay, back to this one. The Dodgers open up the day tied for first place in the NL West with the Padres, and the Giants are in third just a half-game back. This two-game tango features one Giant starter who hasn't lost this year, and another who was a former Dodger who went 0-2 against us last year (in three starts) but then helped San Francisco win NLDS Game 3 against us.
Meanwhile, don't let a series win over the lowly 7-14 Tigers fool you. We've still got Justin Turner scuffling with a .187 BA (and a .499 OPS), while Cody Bellinger's flash of a comeback dissipated quickly in the Detroit series as he went 1-for-11 with an RBI (Bellinger is batting .208). And we haven't even named a starter for Wednesday.
Clench up, Dodgers fans.
