The Dodgers were in a deep slumber with the bats coming into Thursday evening’s series finale against the Dbacks. The Dodgers were 0 for 18 with runners in scoring position at one point, until they exploded for five runs in the bottom of the seventh. Before then runs were hard to come by. Before the game the Dodgers used the “all righty loser lineup” as I like to call it, that Don Mattingly trotted out all the time last season. With left hander Robbie Ray on the mound, Dave Roberts loaded the lineup with right handers.
The strange thing was everyone was out of position. Kike Hernandez was playing in left field. Howie Kendrick was at third base, and Austin Barnes was at second base. Justin Turner was still nursing a sore hand after getting hit by a pitch last night. The Dodgers seemed in a haze until they finally snapped out of it by rallying for five runs in the bottom of the seventh to overcome a 2-0 deficit and defeat the Snakes by a score of 5-2. The win gives them their first series victory at Dodger Stadium this season.
Dbacks 2 6 1
Dodgers 5 8 0
WP-Howell-1-0
LP-Delgado-0-1
SV-Jansen-4
Before the eighth inning the Dodgers were unable to solve the enigma that was Robbie Ray. He flummoxed the Dodgers limiting them to just three hits through the first six innings until that fateful seventh inning when he seemed to run out of gas. Overall Ray threw 6.1 innings allowing two earned runs on four hits and struck out five. He wasn’t charged with the loss though.
His mound opponent Ross Stripling pitched well too. Although the stockbroker didn’t throw a no-hitter, he still preformed well, (6 IP 2ER 5H 2BB 5K), and was also not involved in the decision. The game came down to a battle of the bullpens, and for once the Dodger bullpen succeeded.
The Dbacks had taken the lead in the top of the fifth. Chris Hermann’s one-out double, was followed one-out later by Nick Ahmed’s single to right to put the Snakes up 1-0. The Dbacks scored another run in the top of the sixth to grab a 2-0 lead. Socrates Brito reached on a ground ball single to left, and then stole second base to get into scoring position. Then consecutive ground outs from Paul Goldschmidt, and David Peralta plated Brito for the second run. Speaking of Goldschmidt, for once he was not a factor in the game. The Dodger killer went 0 for 4 with a strikeout.
Then Robbie Ray got tired in the seventh. Trayce Thompson led off with a single to left. After A.J. Ellis flied out, Austin Barnes walked. Ray was immediately hooked and right hander Randall Delgado brought in to face pinch-hitter Justin Turner. The red dream singled into left to score Thompson from second base to cut the lead to 2-1.
Kike’s double to the gap in left-center scored Barnes and Turner to put the Dodgers in front 3-2! The Dbacks made another pitching change replacing Delgado with Andrew Chafin. Yasiel Puig’s groundball single to right scored Kike to give the Dodgers a 4-2 lead. Adrian Gonzalez got into the fun as well. His ground ball single through the stupid little shift trickled into right field to score Puig and the Dodgers go up 5-2.
The Dodgers bullpen took things the rest of the way. J.P. Howell and Yimi Garcia both pitched a scoreless frame. Closer Kenley Jansen entered in the ninth to shut the door on the Snakes and pick up his fourth save of the season. The Dodgers win!
Hernandez and Puig were the offensive stars of the game with two hits apiece. Hernandez drove in two and scored once. On a side note, Chris Hatcher was placed on paternity leave after his wife gave birth. Left hander Adam Liberatore was called up for a few days to replace him. Maybe that’s why Hatcher has been pitching like such crap lately. He’s been distracted, and understandably so.
The Dodgers improve to 6-4 on the season, and 2-1 at home. The Giants lost again to Colorado, so the Dodgers pick up a game on them in the standings. Speaking of those Giants, they come into town for a three game set on Friday evening. Tomorrow night will be the second round of the Clayton Kershaw vs. Madison Bumgarner main event on Jackie Robinson night. So the Dodgers better be prepared to beat these guys and not play like jerks. Would be nice to beat the Giants you know.
Happy Thursday everyone! Who wants some Snake Tacos?!
https://twitter.com/CallingTheGame/status/720832889445683200
Go Blue!
As usual, when the Dodgers win, the gloom and doomers who play fantasy baseball in their mind have little to say.
The bullpen is looking a little better – no opinion on every piece, except that the Dodgers have a lot of pieces.
The starting pitching is right there with the best in baseball… so far.
The hitting will do.
The Dodgers are in First Place – not bad for a team with 11 on the DL.
… and to think some said the Dodgers don’t have depth! For the life of me. I can’t understand why anyone would think the Dodgers would tank this year. Now, winning the World Series? That’s another question entirely, but the Dodgers have to be in that equation.
What I like is that the Dodgers are not forcing the Power – The Homers will come…
The Dodgers are in the TOP 5 in the NL in hitting, pitching and fielding. That’s balance, and that’s with 11, count ’em ELEVEN on the DL and a stacked minor league system!
A rational person has to feel pretty good about their chances. We haven’t even seen Turner, Seager or Grandal get hot yet!
I think everything is good… except the pen. Maybe they will step up, but the ones who don;t will be outta’ here! The key is the pen.IT WILL BE FIXED – ONE WAY OR ANOTHER.
Arizona is looking a lot like a train-wreck!
Amen Brother.
I will give that an AMEN also!
Remember we are on pacific time, and we are three hours behind. Give us a chance, to make some comments.
The win now, trade the farm Diamondbacks, are in last.
The build the farm, play the question marks Dodgers, are in first.
I wonder what Greinke is thinking now? Someone said that he wasn’t happy, when they made that move with the Braves. Where did someone read that, about Greinke.
MJ, I read that and posted about it a few threads ago. He can’t be happy with how he has pitched so far, I thought he had a “deer in the headlights” look to him, when they showed him on TV last night.
The bullpen has done their job in 60% of the games.
Needs to improve but can’t say they finally did well yesterday because of that 60%.
Sometimes facts get in the way of emotional blather.
Even granting the Dodgers bullpen chunks just a couple of those games, they would still be 8-2. Should we just give the WS to the Cubs now, though. Wow! they got a good team. There’s the Dodgers model. Create a West Coast dynasty. The team could be playing the Cubs for the NLCS every year in a rivalry that supersedes the one with the Giants.
The back of the Giants rotation has some issues. Granted they played in CO, but Stripling and Wood have pitched well enough to keep the team in games. I like what I see in Stripling in a very small sample size. Could it be the Dodgers are finally becoming the Cardinals, where the depth allows them to insert a rookie into the rotation and get good production?
I’m hopeful about Puig. He had another good at bat last night, going the opposite way with two strikes and driving in a run. Are you watching, Joc? Even going the other way, I bet his exit velocity was still triple digits. His home runs will come.
Maeda might be the ROY. That’d be an interesting race: between Maeda, Seager and even Stripling.
Reports of the Dodgers demise are premature. We’ll see what happens when they face good teams, and I don’t think they can hold their own with the Cubs yet, but the fact that they’re 6-4 with multiple bullpen meltdowns and players on the DL is a hopeful sign that they can hang on until reinforcements arrive.
dodgerpatch: “Reports of the Dodgers demise are premature”. Agreed. Am I the only one, who sees a Dodger team that could be a monster and is just struggling a little bit to find that consistency necessary to run off a long winning streak? Just a little tweaking necessary?
Our favorite “knucklehead” is looking awfully good. I like the hustle and the attitude looks good. Badger has quoted from the dictionary all the derogatory meanings for a knucklehead, but, our knucklehead is more like this: “The knucklehead is a retronym used by enthusiasts to refer to a Harley-Davidson motorcycle engine, so named because of the distinct shape of the rocker boxes”. Kind of fits, Puig does have a distinct shape!!
Dodgerpatch It isn’t just the back of the Giants rotation. It is everyone, except Bumgarner. We better hit Cueto, out of the game, this time, if we face him. We let Cueto and Cain, stay in the game to long. The Giants jinxed themselves, when they signed not one, but two free agent pitchers. Fate is not on there side anymore! They may make the playoffs, but they won’t win another World Series, for another fifty years.
MJ: “They may make the playoffs, but they won’t win another World Series, for another fifty years”. I like the way your thinking!!
Scott: “The strange thing was everyone was out of position. Kike Hernandez was playing in left field. Howie Kendrick was at third base, and Austin Barnes was at second base”. Not sure they are out of position at all! Versatility and flexibility are highly sought out by FAZ. Looks like to me that Kendrick can seamlessly fill in at left field, third and second. Utley, first, second, third. Hernandez can play anywhere. Culberson anywhere. Barnes, catcher, second, third. All this versatility gives Roberts lots of options.
Scott: “Who knows what the lineup will look like tonight. The constant lineup shuffling seems to be back, much to my dismay”. I may be in the minority, but, I like it. When I look at our roster, I see Puig, Gonzalez and Seager as everyday players. Everyone else looks interchangeable, to me, at many different positions. When a manager sends up a pinch hitter, he tries to bat a righty against a lefty, and vise versa. Why not make out your starting lineup that way also? Especially, with the before mentioned versatility on the roster.
Boxout 7 I rather have Culberson up on the team, then Barnes. Culberson can play both the infield, and the outfield, and can hit better then Barnes. Barnes needs to go down, and get some at bats. If AJ or Grandal, get hurt, Barnes is only a phone call away, and he would be better prepared, to fill in. And probably would have better at bats.
Can’t argue with that MJ. Having to pick between those two is a nice problem to have, don’t you agree?
Yes, and I do think Barnes is a good player, but he needs to be playing everyday, to get better, and to be ready, if the big team needs him.
Well, it wasn’t a Mattingly loser lineup because SVS and Heisey weren’t available. Chip Hale certainly handled his pitching staff like someone who may want to be in another uniform next year. Hatcher can stay on paternity leave until the baby starts teething.
Fantasy baseball? That’s a laugh. Never said the Dodgers didn’t have a chance in the NL worst, but I’m not lining up for World Series tickets.
Maybe Hatcher needs to be on Paternity leave until the kid starts College….
MM that was a good one! Snider you too, but MM made it even longer.
Ok, first bet of the season for all of you who are crowing:
the standings as they are now will change in 1 week. 50 push-ups. Put your pecs where your mouth is.
I’m still concerned about the same things I’ve been concerned about for two years. I dont see 162+ game depth in our rotation, our pen looks shaky and we leave too many on base, especially in scoring position. The season is 10 games in and I’m hearing the same nonsense from the same guy. We who see cracks are not hiding. We all love wins, and 6-4 is a great start. But to believe we are a .600 ball club is naive. I got another 50 push-ups that says we won’t be .600 after 50 games.
Giants Dodgers. In our house.
I am interested in that first bet. Are you saying Dodgers won’t be in first in a week? I think Dodgers are going to make “Spaghetti out of Righetti’s” pitchers this weekend. I will bet the 50 push-ups Dodgers are on top of Midgets in a week!! Are they “on your knuckles” push-ups?
I’m saying the current standings will change. We have 3 teams tied for first and 2 tied for last. Colorado is not a first place club and Arizona is not a last place club. I’m saying to act like the first 10 games mean ANYTHING is just ridiculous.
I haven’t done a flat hand push-up since my motor cycle accident in ’75. I use the Perfect Push-up tool these days.
We need to win it tonight for Jackie! Roberts, is what Jackie wanted, and it has took a long time, for the Dodgers, but this is the right time, and the right man! They don’t seem to play as well, on national TV, but it is in the cards tonight!
I was really worried until that rally. And Turner needed that hit, as much as the team. He has had some tough at bats, lately. Who said that Kike couldn’t hit Righties? He delivered, and so did the guys after him. All of the pitchers kept Goldy, out of most of this series, and that, is doing something. I looked at the Dbacks line up, and it doesn’t look to good. They are really missing there centerfielder, and Inciarte. Even Goldy, can’t do it all! I hope Puig starts driving the ball, to the right side again, because he gets more extra base hits, hitting that way. I know he hit a grounder to the right side, in the rally, but he hasn’t done that much, since he hit in SD. I hope that Puig takes Bumgarner deep, tonight. And the Dodgers, and Kershaw, win this game tonight. I am sick of Bumgarner, and his HRs against Kershaw. I hope everyone tonight, have at bats against Bumgarner, like they did, in the game, that they clinched the national league west. And take him deep three times, like they did, in that game.
MJ, I thought that the DBacks would be hurt without Inciarte, but I did not expect Pollock’s broken elbow. With Pollock, Goldy, and Peralta, the offense would be good at 2-4 or 3-5. Segura has been a surprise at the top of the order replacing Inciarte (in batting order). And Ahmed has been a surprise offensively so far (at least to me). Even with the error in Game 2, he is still an outstanding defensive SS. I am sure seeing Chris Owings in CF and Drury in RF (game 2) and LF (Game 3) was not what LaRussa and Stewart had in mind when they structured this team, and I am sure they expected more from Tomas. It’s no wonder that the rumors have Michael Bourn to the DBacks.
Greinke vs Shields tonight. Somebody is going to turn it around, and my guess it will be Greinke (but I hope not).
AC I rather have Utley in the line up tonight, if it is between him or Barnes. I just think that Utley, makes things happen, even if it is only a walk. And by putting Howie in left, allows the Dodgers, to put both Utley and Howie, in the line up, and gives the Dodgers, two more good bats.
And I think that Roberts, should play Grandal, four or five games in a roll. Because this would give Grandal some consistent at bats, to help him start hitting.
We are not getting any offense, from the catchers, and Grandal, is a switch hitter. AJ probably shouldn’t, have started last night’s game, so he could catch Kershsaw tonight.
They need to get Grandal in more games, and Barnes needs to go down to AAA. He is not really needed. Like I have already said, Culberson would be a better player, to have off the bench.
MJ, I would think that Howie will play 2nd tonight and Kike’ will start in LF. Barnes will be on the bench tonight. I think he will be the next position player to go back down. He needs to be in a lineup every night. I do not know why Ellis caught last night. I would expect to see Ellis tonight as well, but Grandal caught Kershaw last year on more than a few occasions, so who knows??
I will be most interested to see if Trayce gets the start over Joc. Joc only has 3 ABs against LHP, and Thompson has done well. I think Trayce gets another start. I hope Joc starts to get some ABs against other lefties. I understand sitting against Bumgarner.
I saw highlights of Stripling. He uses the high-low strike zone, not just in and out. Great over the top curve ball. And enough gas. The best part that I can see is his ability to move the ball around the zone. He even throws the curve ball high in the zone, usually dangerous, but it fools the batter, who doesn’t expect it there. Opponents are gathering film on him as we speak. He will have to stay a step ahead of these offenses, and it looks like he has the head and arm to do it. Maybe we finally have a prospect who can pitch worth a damn.
Just checked the minor league games/stats. Kyle Farmer is hitting third and catching for Tulsa with about a .340 BA. As a former college shortstop, he could be the real deal. We should all watch his progress. The biggest complaint about him is his lack of HR power, but he hits lots of 2 baggers.