The Dodgers rebounded nicely after their frustrating 4-1 loss to the Padres on Tuesday night to beat the Friars 4-2 in the third game of the series on Wednesday night. Kenta Maeda turned in another solid performance with his fourth consecutive start with nine strikeouts. The Dodger bats took advantage of some sloppy San Diego defense with three runs in the top of the third, (one was unearned) and then added another run in the top of the eighth for insurance. It was an all around good night for the Dodgers as Arizona lost and we found out that Ross Stripling will be replacing Miles Mikolas on the National League all-star team and Max Muncy will be participating in the home run derby. The Dodgers won their 50th game of the season.
But getting back to Maeda, because he was outstanding, improving his record to 6-5 on the season. Maeda tossed 5.2 innings allowing just one earned run on four hits with nine strikeouts. The Japanese right hander walked just one and made 92 pitches. Maeda’s only problems came from the first two batters of the game who reached base in the bottom of the first. Travis Jankowski singled and then scored on a double from Carlos Asuaje to give the Pads a 1-0 lead and tick the heck off out of me. You know how much I hate first inning deficits.
Dodgers 4 10 0
Padres 2 5 2
WP-Maeda-6-5
LP-Lucchesi-4-5
SV-Jansen-25
HR-Villanueva-18
That would be all the Padres would get off of Maeda. He would allow just two more hits and three base runners over the next 5.2 innings. The Dodgers plated three runs off of opposing starter Joey Lucchesi in the top of the third. In that third inning Enrique Hernandez’s one-out slicing double inside the right field foul line got the rally started. After Justin Turner struck out, Matt Kemp sliced a ground ball single into left to score Hernandez and tie the score. Max Muncy’s single sent Kemp to third and Logan Forsythe’s chopper to second was botched by Asuaje to give the Dodgers a 2-1 lead. After the botched force play, Freddy Galvis’s errant throw on Cody Bellinger’s grounder to short scored Muncy to put the Dodgers up 3-1.
The Dodgers added an additional run in the top of the seventh. After a Yasmani Grandal double play erased two walks, Chase Utley doubled and scored on a Chris Taylor RBI single. The Dodgers were leading 4-2. The Padres had cut the lead to 3-2 in the bottom of the seventh when Christian Villanueva smashed a solo home run off of Daniel Hudson.
New Dodger Dylan Floro pitched a scoreless eighth inning and passed the baton to Kenley Jansen who pitched around a lead-off walk to record his 25th save of the season. The Dodgers had 10 hits and were 3 for 9 with runners in scoring position. The boys in blue left ten men on base. Kemp, Muncy, and Bellinger each had two hits in the win. Dodger pitchers struck out 12 Padres, while the Dodger hitters whiffed just five times. The Dodgers wrap up the series on Thursday night before they head back home for the final three games before the all-star break. National League all-star Ross Stripling will counter Tyson Ross in the series finale.
Most impressive part of the game for me was Bellinger beating the shift twice. He doubled down the left field line and then later lined a shot through the hole for a single. Maeda was excellent and his last strikeout was cool because strike 3 was obviously way out of the strike zone, so the Dodgers finally had an umpire give them one. Proves they can win without hitting HRs, but they still need to be better with men in scoring position. Grandal still sucks in those situations. Forsythe finally gets a little luck on his botched grounder, but he still cannot hit a lick.
Speaking of beating the shift….. can this possibly br true, or, since it doesn’t support what some prefer to be true, is it fake news?
http://wsau.com/blogs/sports/42787/mlb-the-curious-case-of-the-shift/
.293 against the shift, .255 when players line up in their normal positions. It would appear that guys like Bellinger are listening to guys like me. You’re welcome Cody.
Bellinger has been doing that lately, and in fact, Badger commented on that yesterday.
He did do this last year too, and that is why I was so surprised he didn’t do this earlier in the season, but I am glad he is doing that now.
He probably thought he had to supply the power for this team earlier in the season, and he is still very young, for a major leaguer.
Maeda has mostly been really good this year, although he had a couple bad starts when he first came off the DL.
But this is only the Padres, although I know, we have to make sure to beat to bad teams too.
Like I already said about Forsythe, he didn’t hit well last year, but because we were winning so much his lack of offense didn’t come up that much, because he was pretty good on defense, for Turner on third, and at second.
I’m in moderation again. Frustrating.
It’s an article about “is the shift actually working”. The current numbers suggest maybe hitters are learning to adjust.
Select all the text.
Copy it.
Paste it again.
It often works.
The moderation on this blog is a joke. I post on blogs 50x the size and NEVER get any post in moderation.
Badger
Sorry about the moderation, I am barely computer literate, but I just try to get rid of my history each morning, and start with a clean slate.
I still think hitters should have to adjust to the shifts, not eliminate the shifts.
Some hitters, almost get the entire left side of the infield to hit through, yet they continue to pull the ball.
And if hitters want to eliminate the shifts, all they have to do, is hit it where they aren’t!
And the exaggerated shifts seem be, almost always on the right side of the infield, but I could be wrong.
But it isn’t just the shifts that is causing the lack of hits, it is also that some hitters only have one approach when they come up to plate, and that is to hit the ball out.
And a pitcher can easily strike hitters out, when hitters only have one approach, when they come up to bat.
I don’t know about everyone else, but I already can’t wait until the Allstar break is over, so we can get back to some good baseball down the stretch, but it will be fun to see how well Muncy does in the HR derby.
And anyone that got really turned off to the HR derby way before this year, should take a look at the HR derby this year, because the derby has really been changed for the good, and because of that, it is much more entertaining to watch, with the new format baseball went with.
One post in moderation per month is a small price to pay for not having the site overrun with spam
Don’t agree, with technology where it is one post a year would still be excessive.
I post on political websites with 50x the volume and never been in moderation. I post on a Red Sox blog with much higher volume, again never even heard of moderation there.
If you know of a better spam filter, please let me know. I’ll install it. We do the best we can over here. Give me a break here.
I think Kemp is setting a good example to our young hitters. Obviously Kemp has the power and the flair and the pedigree, but seeing him just hit singles to bring home runs, is going to rub off on guys like Bellinger, whom I’ve always believed can hit for average with opposite field power.
No one can say our all stars are not well deserved. Stripling has earned it, so has Kemp. Jansen has pulled himself together.
I know I’ve been absent lately, being on a crazy vacation and all, and actually doing a lot of posting on Lakers blogs these days. Very very glad to see Jonah back. Missed you buddy.
The Athletic has a nice piece on Daniel Hudson’s return to form. Lots of good nuggets from Honeycutt:
When he arrived in Los Angeles in April, the Dodgers noted the success Hudson had with his slider in 2017. Opposing hitters slugged only .157 against it, but .575 against his fastball and .435 against his changeup. Honeycutt suggested he try it more….
Copy and post here Bluto.
Following your advice……
Speaking of beating the shift….. can this possibly br true, or, since it doesn’t support what some prefer to be true, is it fake news?
http://wsau.com/blogs/sports/42787/mlb-the-curious-case-of-the-shift/
.293 against the shift, .255 when players line up in their normal positions. It would appear that guys like Bellinger are listening to guys like me. You’re welcome Cody.
It worked!
Yep. Good tip. Thanks.
I’m not sold on Hudson.
I am liking Floro and also Maeda’s splitter/change up. I hope he teaches the splitter/changeup grip to our young pitcher so. That is the equalizer against modern SABR hitting.
Exactly, Cody probably won’t be seeing those kind of shifts, if he continues to continually, beat them.
What a nugget?
Don’t they often say, baseball is just a game of adjustments.
No need to change the rules on this one. Just make them pay.
If anyone believes it’s not possible, or is even terribly difficult, to take an inside pitch the other way, that person was either poorly trained or is poorly skilled. Of course you would rather pull a cookie into the pavilion, but if a hit and run is on and you get an inside pitch, you have to inside out that pitch the other way. Skilled hitters can do this. I can remember getting jammed and bleeding a grounder toward second that barely had enough on it to reach the outfield grass, but it was ok because NOBODY WAS THERE! May not be as sexy as a fly ball to the warning track, but for a baseball player who is more interested in his team winning than he is in creating a launch angle, it’s a thing of beauty.
I’ve taken two bases on slow rollers against the shift that goes onto the grass. It’s damned exhilarating actually.
You hit against a shift? And you took an extra base? Damm. I’m impressed. Power AND speed. Nobody ever shifted against me. Santa Ana tried to fool me by having the shortstop cover, but the ball was a foot outside so I let it go. Stolen base.
Nugget was meant to mean morsel information.
I don’t have access to the Athletic. They asked for money. I said no, information should be free, attached with a hundred click bait ads and videos, they said I would need to pay them. I said I can’t afford it, I’m on a fixed income and cannot add any new expenses. They said “we are not inclined to make an exception just because you can’t afford it.” So, the takeaway on all that …. I realize I’m poor and not Athletic inclined.
Now you can add depressed to the list.
Wait…..
I don’t need the Athletic – we are in first place again!
I feel better.
Thanks for helping me through this difficult time.
Well, another rest for Kemp or Kike is just a better player. Ask Dummy?
Kemp asked for the day off, citing leg cramps from overuse. I made that up.
Badger
You made up the whole thing or just the part about leg cramps??
Which part sounds more believable?
Floro showing a nasty sinker.