The Dodgers are going to have to pick themselves up from their bootstraps and forget about Tuesday night’s demoralizing meltdown loss to the Marlins. It’s a tough one to get over because it happened against Clayton Kershaw. Even the best of them have bad nights. Kershaw has been flawless before that stupid inning. Fortunately there’s always another game the next day in baseball.
The real puzzler has been the lackluster offense. The club is simply not hitting at home. I’ll get into their offensive struggles at Dodger Stadium in another article, but this is eerily familiar to seasons past. So far through eight home games the Dodgers are batting just .224 with 28 runs scored and seven home runs. Their .224 average places them 22nd out of the 30 clubs. Their 28 runs scored puts them at the bottom of MLB. Last night they mustered three runs on six hits, but two runs were scored off of wild pitches, and the third run was driven in by Kershaw himself. The offense just has to get better. Going with a set lineup and ending the lineup shuffling could help get the guys going with the bats.
Dodgers Lineup vs. Fish
Hernandez LF
Puig RF
Gonzalez 1B
Turner 3B
Seager SS
Kendrick 2B
Ellis C
Thompson CF
Kazmir P
Justin Nicolino-0-0 vs. Scott Kazmir-1-1
Game time – 7:10 PM- TV- SNLA
Tonight’s pitching match-up will see second year hurler left hander Justin Nicolino on the mound for the Marlins. The Dodgers will give the ball to Scott Kazmir in a battle of lefties. Nicolino is replacing the originally scheduled starter Jarred Cosart. The Fish optioned Cosart down to triple-A because he has sucked through the first month of this season. The Marlins are obviously going with a youth movement.
Nicolino is a 24-year old from Orlando, Florida. The Marlins acquired him in 2012 during the huge blockbuster trade with the Blue Jays. His first taste of big league action came last season. He made 12 starts for the Fish and finished with a 5-4 record and a 4.01 ERA. The problem with Nicolino is he has no swing and miss stuff. He struck out just 23 in 74 innings of work. That’s a 2.8 strikeout per nine rate. He had a 6.3 strikeout per nine rate in the minors. He’s an extreme pitch to contact guy. He has great control, but doesn’t strike guys out. The Dodgers have to be able to score some runs off this guy right?
He’s faced the Dodgers once last season. In four innings he allowed five earned runs on six hits and struck out two. He got the loss in that game and he’s never pitched at Dodger Stadium. The current Dodgers have only faced him a few times.
Nicolino vs. Dodgers
| Name | PA | AB | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | BB | SO | BA | OBP | SLG | OPS | SH | SF | IBB | HBP | GDP |
| A.J. Ellis | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 | .000 | .000 | .000 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Adrian Gonzalez | 2 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .500 | .500 | .500 | 1.000 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Howie Kendrick | 2 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .500 | .500 | .500 | 1.000 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Joc Pederson | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | .000 | .000 | .000 | .000 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Justin Turner | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | .000 | .500 | .000 | .500 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Total | 10 | 9 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | .222 | .300 | .222 | .522 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
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Scott Kazmir will try and turn his season around Wednesday against the Marlins. Other than his first start against San Diego, the veteran has been horrendous. He’s been battling a thumb injury, so I don’t know if that’s been bothering him or not. Kazmir has a 6.63 ERA through four starts. He’s allowed 21 hits over 19 innings and has a 6.03 FIP. He’s been that bad and it makes you wonder if this is just injury related or not. Perhaps it’s too small of a sample size to judge. Is this just a short-term struggle for Kazmir? Or does he just suck as a Dodger? It seems like he is not making any adjustments. He’ll get his chances to right the ship, but it better happen soon before the front office starts getting impatient.
Kazmir has little experience against the Marlins after spending his entire career in the American League. He has made four starts against the Fish and pitched well. He’s 2-1 with a 3.00 ERA and has struck out 31 Marlins in 24 innings.
The current Marlins are hitting .275 (11 for 40) against Kazmir with one extra-base hit. Only one Marlin has any success against him in the small amount of place appearances. 42-year old legend Ichiro Suzuki is hitting .323 (10 for 31) of off Kazmir.
Fish vs. Kazmir
| Name | PA | AB | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | BB | SO | BA | OBP | SLG | OPS | SH | SF | IBB | HBP | GDP |
| Ichiro Suzuki | 32 | 31 | 10 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 5 | .323 | .344 | .355 | .699 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Giancarlo Stanton | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | .000 | .000 | .000 | .000 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Christian Yelich | 3 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .333 | .333 | .333 | .667 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Adeiny Hechavarria | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 | .000 | .000 | .000 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Jeff Mathis | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | .000 | .500 | .000 | .500 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Total | 42 | 40 | 11 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 7 | .275 | .310 | .300 | .610 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
I hope we don’t see the B-squad again against another left hander. It’s not helping. Go Blue!
If I see an all right handed batting order tonight I am going to be pissed.
You won’t be pissed!
I thought like Badger. I was watching last nights game — saw Kershaw winning easily — switch over to Chicago Med (my wife likes that show) — then tuned back to the Dodger game and it was 5 – 3. Knocked my socks off.
And the Dodgers were given two of the runs they scored.
Kershaw was out-Kershawed again. Out pitched by another nameless N.L. pitcher.
For tonight’s game I would like to see Thomeson, Pederson, and Puig in the outfield and Kike’ at 3rd.
Bum I want Agon, and Cory to play, and your outfield line up. But if Kike plays third, that leaves Howie at second. I know that Turner doesn’t hit leftys well, but who would you rather have, in the game? Turner, or Howie?
It is Cory’s birthday today!
I play Thompson and Hernandez. I only sit AGon when he asks for a few minutes off. I don’t care who is on the mound, I take a left handed him over a right handed Grandal.
Grandal has smashed a couple balls down the 3rd base line hitting RH and they plays were made. I’d like to see more of him getting a chance RH than AJ.
The RH lineup would theoretically have both AJ and Grandal in it. I don’t take AGon out to do that. Maybe later in the year, like when it’s 90 degrees in St Louis.
Badger who do you want to play tonight? Howie or Turner? Turner didn’t hit leftys good last year, but he is hitting better then Howie.
I just got off my bike, and I turned the TV on, and of course the Giants go ahead of the Padres, right then. I hate the Giants, and there Homer anouncers!
MJ is that an exercise bike or a normal one?
Now I’m 50 I’ve gotta start doing something healthy – cycling looks like fun?
Watford it is an exercise bike. I like riding an excercise bike, because I never have to stop pedaling, like you do, with a regular bike, when you have a stop sign, so I get a full workout. But if you are shape to ride a regular bike, any time you want.
I have a bike I’ll sell you. It’s kinda heavy as it has a 1441 cc engine but that doesn’t make uphill to be any problem. Actually I understand a Harley is more valuable in the UK than the US. A few years ago a guy from the UK bought my 82 limited edition and several other bikes to take back to the UK.
Watford your not fifty, remember your the new thirty! Sixty is the new forty, and fifty, is the new thirty.
Howie or Turner. Good question. Both? With Thompson in center and Hernandez in left. Rip it right lineup.
Cycling is a good fit for fifty W. Low impact. It’s good for the environment too – if you do it two days in a row. Cycle today and recycle tomorrow. I got a lot of hills where I am so 45 minutes is a ball buster for me. I tried the trails here in Sedona. Damn. Over my head on most of them. I would need a better bike than I have and I’m not doing that. I’d swim if I had a river or a lake to do it in. I don’t. Not doing pools these days.
I got my lineup.
We win 6-5.
Thanks Badger, and you have the right lineup, because they are both playing.
I hope Roberts talked to the team, and have them ready for the game tonight. And you never know, in the next game, Maeda might out pitch Fernandez !
I think that it is too soon to make Joc Pederson a platoon player.
Kazmir off to another fine start (snicker).
He has no confidence, but I think he is mad now, so maybe he will give the Dodgers some innings. That’s all we can hope for, but if he doesn’t, this front office, better do something! I would have never signed him to a multi year contract, after what happened with the Angels. The GM loves former A’s!
Sick of Fareed Man’s lineups? Have to prove we “won” those trades. These games don’t count, remember? Kazmir pitching hurt, but he feels fine.
Snider I understand why you asked me if I was that guy at Dodgers’s Digest. I saw that article about Puig’s hitting, and I didn’t need to see his stats, to know that Puig hits best, to the right side.
I was just kidding because you quoted some stats that seemed new to me. That article might as well have been in Greek.
Like most of you, I’m not a huge Kazmir fan either (or, as Vin has been saying, “Kaz-mire”), but he hasn’t pitched poorly today at all. He gave up a bunch of squibbers and soft hits in the 1st inning. The hits just found holes; happens.
He’s settled down. Hopefully our offense wakes up now against whoever their starter is
Bobby I agree he is doing better now, but the first inning, was the same. But I agree we need to get runs! They faced this rookie last year.
These Dodgers — have they hit a speed bump? Or, are they in trouble?
What ever, they are not making it easy on themselves or their fans.
Now the entire starting pitching is suspect. Kershaw is pitching a gem, but he other guy is too. Dodgers get some ok hitting, but the other team gets more.
So maybe tomorrow another player from the scrap heap will be offered a minor league contract . . . go down for a week and then to Dodger stadium.
The Marlins are facing tough starting pitching. The National and the Mets, have great starting pitching!
But we have depth. What depth? The depths of not being able to hit a frikin ball and score some runs. Holy crap!!!! Do something offense!!!!!
I’m impressed. For a guy that’s hurt, this was one gutty effort.
Team offensive schneid. We’ll snap out of it.
Badger no one is hitting. What is going to happen against Fernadez tomorrow? Badger I hope so! This is so hard to watch.
Marlins stink – but they can beat the Dodgers.
Dodgers have scored 5 runs against a Marlins’ staff that was horrible statistically – not so much now.
this is actually horrendous to watch. we look like we’re half asleep