The Dodgers are playing their first series of the season in San Francisco and while I was driving home from work all I heard Charley and Rick talking about was how bad the Giant’s lineup has been this year. You hear the numbers and you almost can’t believe it. Rick and Charley made sure we all knew about the Giant’s inability to hit well….anyone. Even Buster Posey isn’t hitting in 2019. San Francisco’s decrepit lineup is the main reason why the club is mired in last place in the National League West. As bad as the Giant’s hitters have been this year, even they can easily score runs off the Dodgers bullpen.
And that’s the story of tonight’s infuriating 3-2 Dodger loss to the Giants in Monday’s series opener at Oracle Park. Not even Cody Bellinger himself, breaking nearly every MLB hitting record this year can save the Dodgers from their own bullpen. That’s how bad the Dodger relief corp is. How many times can we watch the incompetent relievers blow lead after lead for the Dodgers this season? Tonight it was Ross Stripling and Dylan Floro that blew a 2-0 Dodger lead in the bottom of the seventh when Evan Longoria (batting .206 entering that fateful inning) cleared the bases with a three-run double off of Floro that put the Giants ahead by a run.
Kenta Maeda the Dodger’s starting pitcher did as well as he could. Maeda tossed five innings allowing seven hits, three walks and nine base runners but none of them crossed the plate. That’s a recurring theme for the weak hitting Giants in 2019. Maeda struck out three and got some big help from his defense behind him. If not for a great throw from Bellinger in the third to nab Brandon Crawford trying to take third in the bottom of the third, and then a diving lunging catch from Max Muncy in the bottom of the sixth it might have been a different story in the early innings.
Dodgers 2 9 0
Giants 3 11 0
WP-Dyson-1-0
LP-Stripling-1-2
SV-Smith-7
On the other hand the Dodgers couldn’t figure out opposing starter Jeff Samardzija who tossed five shutout innings allowing just two hits and a walk. But the shark was removed after five innings and the Dodger hitters got going against the San Francisco bullpen. In the top of the sixth the Dodgers got singles from Joc Pederson and Justin Turner before Bellinger poked one through into right field to give the Dodgers a 1-0 lead. Max Muncy’s RBI double scored another run for the Dodgers to increase the lead to 2-0. Unfortunately Enrique Hernandez lines into a double play or the Dodgers may have gotten more.
In the bottom of the seventh Ross Stripling, now pitching out of relief gave up a one-out single to Joe Panik and Solarte followed with a double to send Panik to third. After a walk to Brandon Belt loaded the bases right hander Dylan Floro was called into the game. He struck out Buster Posey and it appeared that maybe the Dodgers would get out of this. But the Dodger relievers are bad folks, they’re really bad and shouldn’t surprise anyone when Longoria sliced a double down the left field line to score three. The bases clearing double gave the Giants a 3-2 lead and the game. Once the bullpen blew the game it was instantly over.
The Dodger bullpen currently ranks 22nd in ERA and has allowed 17 home runs in 31 games. There’s not much management can do to fix the mess at this point. This collection of relievers are overall as a unit a stinker. Please remember that Andrew Friedman for the second year in a row built an atrocious bullpen with a group of incompetent relievers. The Dodgers look to blow even more late inning leads on Tuesday in the second game of the series. Walker Buehler whom the Dodgers hope pitches a complete game faces left hander Drew Pomeranz with first pitch scheduled for 6:45 PM PST.
Well, usually I tend to defend Roberts, but today he definitely earned his “Dummy” tag.
Kenta struggled with his command. 4 of the 7 hits he allowed were cheap hits against the shift, yet he still put zeros on the board. “Dummy” went to Chicken Strips in the 7th, and Ross had absolutely nothing. “Dummy” left him in too long and allowed him to leave the bases loaded for Floro. Dylan almost gets Strips out of the jam, but gives up a 2 out, bases clearing double. He had Longoria on the ropes too, but hung a big cookie out there for Evan. That was all the Gnats needed, as the Dodger offense was on vacation. 2-5 RISP, 8 LOB. Still, just only one run down, “Dummy” has CT3 lead off in the top of the ninth, pinch hitting for Verdugo, even though Alex tends to hit lefties well. The rest is history. The Dodgers, I mean “Dummy”, blows a game to the 2nd to last place Gnats… a very embarrassing opening to the three game set. Can’t win ‘um all, but should not give them away either.
I’ll preface this by saying I did not see the game. Was Floro or another reliever warmed up when Stripling came into the game? If nobody was warm I’m not sure how it can be said Roberts left Stripling in too long. It takes time for pitchers to get warm and according to the box score Stripling threw a total of 3 pitches to Panik (2) and Solarte (1). Unless somebody was already warm I don’t know what Robert’s could have done differently.
I will answer your question Jimbo. Floro was not warming up until after the double put runners at 2nd and 3rd. Then he warmed up in a hurry and there was some stalling involved. Strip had Belt down 1-2 and lost him. It was not that the bullpen was bad. It was the fact that Stripling did not do his job. All 3 runs were charged to him. Floro made 1 bad pitch and that was that. Even Kelly, who gave up a double, got out of his own jam. Loss was a combination of lack of offense. 9 hits, almost all singles and you score 2 runs. Timely DP’s by the Giants killed a couple of rally’s. Freese after getting a PH single was thrown out when he went too far around the base and slipped trying to get back. Had he stayed there, it would have been runners on 1st and 3rd with 1 out. Made no difference because Kike lined into a DP. Missed opportunities and one bad pitch and you lose the game. Pollock to the 10 day IL with an infection in his elbow. Someone will get called up today. Toles reported to the Dodger complex in Arizona yesterday. I doubt he gets another shot in a Dodger uni.
Jimbo,
I see your point. It does take time to warm up. But, Alexander was in, and had thrown only ten pitches in the 6th. Should have left him in for the 7th. “Dummy” decided to bring Strips in, and Strips had location issues from the get-go. Could not find the strike zone. “Dummy” had plenty of time to get someone up immediately. A true reliever has the ability to warm up fast, when the phone rings.
But, that Punch hitting for Verdugo with CT3 sealed the deal for sure.
Blue
Dummy does stuff like last night all the time. You are commenting on something I have seen over and over again since Dummy took over. The bad thing for me is others continue to cover for him when it makes no sense. Attacking me always seems to happen when I bring up his stupidity. Pinchhitting for Verdugo with Taylor is boneheaded to say the least. Glad to see it was so evident to you last night.
Have to agree on that Package. Verdugo has shown he can handle lefty’s in his few AB’s against them so far. Taylor has not been able to hit anyone. So it was a wasted AB especially down by only 1 run. Pollock was not available and will be put on the IL today…problem, no one at AAA is lighting it up. Castro, an infielder, has been their best hitter so far, and none of the outfielders are doing very well at all. Garlick is the only one doing anything, and he is not on the 40 man roster. Beatty is hitting in the .270’s. Rios, who you would think would get the call is only hitting .221.
Bleh.
Frustrating game on a number of levels.
Stripling just adds to the frustration with the Bullpen.
Taylor continues to look lost and unable to discern ball from strike.
Hopefully, Pollock gets his elbow straight (PUN), but the team is so deep it shouldn’t impact day to day.
OMG!
‘The team is so deep’ that they have no RHH outfielder to bring up. This team is no more deeper than any of the other top organizations. That is a complete hallucination from drinking way too much of that Dodger Kool-Aid.
They’ve had to trade for players every year because they do not have pieces in their organization.
Well another quality start wasted Wednesday by an impotent offense. 1-10 RISP, 12 KO’s. 8 LOB. Ryu gets ripped off again, big time. Dodgers had the SF pitchers on the ropes all night, but could not cash in. Many of the Dodgers’ right handed hitters could not hit the left handed pitchers. Whoops, I’m sounding like a broken record again.
Verdugo, 2-4 with both hits coming off a lefty?… Hey, with a lefty on the mound, didn’t “Dummy” pull left handed Alex in favor of right handed PInch-Swinger CT3 in the first loss? Well, with Pollock out, I think Verdugo will see more Lefties.
Well, “Dummy” yanks Urias in favor of Baez, and Baez blows the game. Probably should not have brought in Urias in in the first place.
Dodgers blow 2 out of 3 to the Hated Ones. Kind of makes the fastest to 20 wins irrelevant …. like, so what?
Is something wrong with Seager?…. I hope he is not hurt again. He does not look good. I think he is trying to play through an injury.
Time for an #AngryWin in SD?