After the emotional series with the snakes, the Dodgers welcomed the New York Mets. The road didn’t get any easier as they took on Jacob deGrom. The Dodgers countered with Alex Wood. The Gauntlet 2 awaits the Dodgers this weekend when they face the Rockies in Coors for three for the division lead. Kenley Jansen might not make that trip due to his health. In the bottom of the first, Justin Turner hit a solo shot and put the Dodgers up 1-0.
Watch it fly, @redturn2. #Crushed pic.twitter.com/H5MG2EdCt8
— MLB (@MLB) September 4, 2018
Alex Wood threw a lot of pitches but kept out of trouble. Finally in the top of the 5th, Jay Bruce started off with a walk. Then Devin Mesoraco singled as well. Jeff Mcneil then hit into a double play but moved Bruce over to third. Jacob deGrom then singled in a run to tie the score. The Dodgers had two major opportunities to score in this game. Jacob deGrom pitched through six innings. The Dodgers then had to face the Mets bullpen one of the worst in the league. You figure you had to like their chances.
My goodness that #Dodgers bullpen. Maeda serves up 3-run HR to pinch-hitter Nimmo in 9th. #Mets lead 4-1.
— Scott Miller (@ScottMillerBbl) September 4, 2018
In the bottom of the 7th, Alex Verdugo doubled. Cody Bellinger followed it up with a single. The Dodgers had 1st and 3rd with no one out. The big bat of the game. Yasmani Grandal struck out without making any contact. Yasiel Puig then hit into a double play when he needed to put the ball in the air. In the bottom of the 8th, Justin Turner walked with two outs. Manny Machado then hit a ground rule double. Kiki Hernandez came up with a chance and flied out. The game was tied 1-1 going into the 9th.
For some reason Kenta Maeda pitched the 9th inning. Jay Bruce got a lead off double. Bruce then got sacrificed to 2nd by Kevin Plawecki. Jeff Mcneil was hit by a pitch. On a 2-2 count Brandon Nimmo hit a three run shot and the Mets led 4-1. Alex Verdugo led off with a single in the bottom of the 9th. Cody Bellinger hit a rocket down the line that was ruled foul. It got over-turned and ruled fair and Verdugo was moved to third.
Yasmani Grandal hit a sac fly to score a run and the score was 4-2. Matt Kemp came up as the tying run. He hit into a double play to end the game. The Snakes lost again to the Padres. The Rockies beat the Giants. The Rockies lead the West by 1/2 game.
James Moya
Hi I’m James Moya. I am an avid Dodgers fan. I graduated Cal State Fullerton with a Bachelors in Communications. I used to freelance at the San Bernardino Sun. I’m excited about this opportunity to write for LA Dodger Report to gain experience. I’m a straight shooter on my opinions and I hope to get some good conversations going. My dream has always been to report on the Dodgers because Baseball is the National Past-time. I hope you enjoy the ride with me.
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Obviously, Matt Kemp lost this game for us. He is supposed to come into the game and bust it wide open. He didn’t do it. It’s all Roberts’ fault, you know. He never knows when to use Kemp or not and this was obviously not one of the times to use him. Everyone knew that except Roberts. What’s wrong with him?
On a more upbeat note, get rid of Grandal for a while. Let’s see what the newcomer can do. Nice not to see Taylor. Stop thinking Hernandez! I had no problem with Maeda pitching the 9th. I didn’t like the results, though. It’s a game of mistakes and he made a beauty. Giving up HR’s in relief is the kiss of death for teams. Look how many times we’ve done it, HR’d to win the game. It hurts. This team has to come back and kick butt. No way should the Mets win any game from us. That’s the attitude I want to see. Follow Verdugo’s lead and get excited about winning! Let the deadwood sit on the bench.
Why should any of us be surprised by this game? This is who the 2018 Dodgers are. They have not the entire year mounted a long winning streak. I think 5 is the most. They have gone through stretches where they cannot score when they have multiple chances. They obviously have let downs after big games. But lets be real, a lot of credit goes to deGrom. He pitched a great game and other than the ball Turner hit, he was in complete control. There was a little bad luck thrown in. Machado’s double going over the wall instead of bouncing off of it. The umpire calling Cody’s ball foul, and then the decision to put them at 1st and 3rd. Obviously Cody would have made it to second. So the DP was set up. The ump made that call even though his back was turned to the play. But the onus is still on Grandal, Kike and the other hitters who failed to produce in big situations. But it is a new day. They need to get on another roll before heading to Colorado’s house of horrors for what is going to be a huge series. They go in there tied for first or ahead, they can really make some ground up. Jansen is most likely not going to go to Colorado with the team, so it will be closer by committee. Hill has not fared well against the Metropolitans, so he needs to correct that fast. As far as Maeda being out there for the 9th, that’s a gut call on Doc’s part. It just did not pan out, just like the offense.
Who in their right mind would throw a down and in slider to a left hand hitter (Maeda to Nimmo)? That’s why the bullpen is crap. Stupid decisions more than lack of talent.
Grandal called for it. Maeda missed location and boom. But it is not all on him. They had ample chances to score and did not. It is on the offense. Nimmo’s HR would have meant nothing if he had gotten Bruce and O’Neill out. So he made more than one bad pitch in that inning. And the bullpen is not great, but it is not crap either. They have pitched pretty well for a while now.
Was a dumb call for sure