The moment we’ve scoffed about for weeks has now finally arrived. The pitching reinforcements are here. McCarthy is coming!!! McCarthy is coming!!!! Paul Revere shouted as he rode his horse through the Dodger stadium club level parking lot. I may have to actually stop making fun of McCarthy’s 48 million dollar contract and stop calling Friedman and Zaidi nerds. Of course it would take more than just one good start for that too happen. I’ll be the first to admit, McCarthy was sharp as a tack.
Thanks to McCarthy’s five dominant innings and the Dodger offense that is now wide awake, the boys in blue completed the three-game sweep of the Colorado Rockies and are now a season high (47-37) ten games above .500. They remain in the Wild Card lead and 5 games behind the Giants in the NL West. The Dodgers slugged two more home runs on Sunday afternoon (Thompson, Grandal) and the bullpen was phenomenal again. I told you guys to never doubt my processes here. This is how the season normally goes. The Dodgers suck for almost three solid months. I remain steadfast for two and a half months.
By mid to late June I start to complain. I called a few people bums, wrote some articles that pissed a lot of people off. Finally I announce the season over at the end of June. Once that happens, the Dodgers start to finally win games. Now here we are. A competitive Dodger baseball club. I don’t want to take all of the credit, but some thank yous’ should be in order. Of course a productive Dodger offense and stingy bullpen also has helped. Its different perspectives.
Dodgers Lineup vs. Baltimore
Utley 2B
Seager SS
Turner 3B
Gonzalez 1B
Thompson CF
Puig RF
Grandal C
Venable LF
Urias P
Yovani Gallardo-3-1 vs. Julio Urias-1-2
Game Time – 6:10 PM – TV- SNLA
Now on our nation’s birthday the Dodgers will face another test, the first place Baltimore Orioles. The Dodgers haven’t faced the Orioles in years and haven’t hosted them in over a decade. The AL East leading birds will fly into Dodger Stadium for a three-game series. Veteran Yovani Gallardo will take on rookie Julio Urias.
The Orioles acquired Gallardo in the winder via free agency, signing him to a 22-million dollar deal. The 30-year old Mexican right hander has started just 7 games this year thanks to shoulder and bicep tendinitis. We all remember Gallardo from his days with the Brewers in which he was a top tier starter. This year he is just 3-1 with a 5.77 ERA. Gallardo once struck out 200+ batters in four consecutive seasons while pitching for Milwaukee. This season he has whiffed just 6.0 per nine innings. That’s what injuries will do to a pitcher’s career.
Gallardo is 3-4 with a 4.60 ERA in 9 career starts versus the Dodgers, and is 2-1 with a 6.05 ERA in 3 career starts at Dodger Stadium. July is the worst month of Gallardo’s career. He has the highest ERA (4.08) in July than any other month in his 10-year career. The Dodgers are batting .319 (29 for 91) against Gallardo. Will Venable and Just Turner have done most of the heavy lifting.
Gallardo vs. Dodgers
| Name | PA | AB | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | BB | SO | BA | OBP | SLG | OPS | SH | SF | IBB | HBP | GDP |
| Will Venable | 27 | 22 | 8 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 5 | 3 | .364 | .481 | .682 | 1.163 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Adrian Gonzalez | 22 | 21 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 1 | 7 | .238 | .273 | .476 | .749 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Justin Turner | 15 | 15 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 | .400 | .400 | .467 | .867 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| A.J. Ellis | 12 | 10 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | .500 | .583 | .600 | 1.183 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Yasmani Grandal | 8 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | .167 | .375 | .167 | .542 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Yasiel Puig | 7 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | .143 | .143 | .143 | .286 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Chase Utley | 6 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 0 | .500 | .667 | 1.000 | 1.667 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Howie Kendrick | 3 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .333 | .333 | .333 | .667 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Bud Norris | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | .000 | .000 | .000 | .000 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Joe Blanton | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | .000 | .000 | .000 | .000 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Kenley Jansen | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1.000 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |||
| Total | 104 | 91 | 29 | 6 | 2 | 2 | 12 | 13 | 17 | .319 | .404 | .495 | .898 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 |
The Dodgers will give the ball to Julio Urias. The youngster is going to stay in the rotation until the rest of the Calvary rides into town. Urias is on a strict innings limit, but with so many injuries the Dodgers have little choice but to let him pitch a little longer. So far Urias has tossed 33 innings at the Major League level and posted a 1-2 record and a 4.09 ERA. He’s whiffed 4 and walked 15 while posting an 11.2 strikeout per nine rate. Last week Urias earned his first MLB win over the Brewers by tossing six innings of two-run ball. He’s pitched very well at Dodger Stadium, posting a 1.93 ERA over 3 starts.
The Orioles are a good club, but they don’t play well away from Camden Yards. They have a 16-21 record on the road. They’ve been having pitching problems and were just swept by the Mariners. The Dodgers on the other hand are looking to add more pitching. After acquiring Bud Norris and activating Brandon McCarthy, the club is expecting left hander Hyun-jin Ryu to return soon as well.
So with all of that said, let’s make it a memorable fourth of July. Because a win for the Dodgers is a win for America! What else could be more American than a Dodger win? Am I right guys?
Happy fourth everyone!
Go Blue!
Settle down Beavis, the Dodgers swept the Rockies, hardly a test of their actually power ranking. If they start sweeping some of the better teams, then it will be time to get geeked over a sweep. However, at least they did beat a team that they should beat, which hasn’t often been the case.
Awesome Dodger flag there! I’ve already borrowed and used it
giants/rockies on espn. Hopefully Colorado continues to help us by going up there and winning
Bobby
Thanks I didn’t know that game was on.
Happy 4th everyone. God Bless our beautiful nation.
Mark, you obviously know the secret to posting pictures here, would you mind posting instructions?
I haven’t tried pictures lately (they didn’t used to work here). but on youtube, just copy the URL and paste it. That’s all.
I used to use tinypic.com but it hasn’t worked lately for pictures:
I think it’s a plot by Scott to curtail our freedom of expression.
Yes I am secretly controlling not only youtube but tinypic.com as well.
Hyn Jin Ryu will start Thursday vs the Padres.
Maybe we are going with a 6 man rotation for a bit?
Weird stat of the day. There are more 2016 LAD RPs with a WAR above 0.5 than SPs according to Baseball Reference.
Happy fourth to all, and thank you to all here, who have served our great country!
I want to go back for a post. To the early-mid-1950s when they were still in Brooklyn. I spent about 1 month in Los Angeles with my grandmother’s and listened to the Game of the Day on the Radio every day and what ever TV was there (Pacific Coast League Angels and Stars). But I REMEMBER THE L.A. TIMES NEWSPAPERS AND THE BROOKLYN DODGERS and their move to first place.
They were some games out, then it was finally down to 5 games behind the N.Y. Giants, then 4 1/2 games behind, then 4, then 3, then 2, then 1 . . . then the Brooklyn guys finally took over first place — now it took awhile, like weeks, but they did.
Can it happen this season again? Maybe, but the Giants have to do their part and lose a few games.
Do any other old timers here remember that season???
No, I am just a young whippersnapper!
Well you’re half right! 😉
Yep. I lived in East New York at the time. Ebbet’s Field wasn’t very far on the subway. Been many times watching ‘the Duke’. Met Gil Hodges and Carl Furillo. Willie Mays owned a liquor store close by. This was Dodger Town and we all went nuts when they won the Series. It was heartbreaking when they moved to L.A.
Chase Utley with his diminished skills is doing what Jimmy Rollins wouldn’t last year – evolve and change.
Was that a bad route by Puig?
This jackass ump has squeezed Urias several times this inning.
They might want to teach Urias how to get out of innings and what an outpitch is. May help him avoid these meltdown frames he keeps having
Wooooaaaaaaa!!!!!!! Yeahhhhh!!!!!
Two words:
Electronic Strike Zone!
That’s three words actually
The umpire said it was two!
Looks like it is time to bring back Ryu, and a long reliever!
yessss!!!!!
You guys may not realize this yet, but Seager is a stud!
Bobby
Mark said he would never make it!
When?
I know you are yankin’ my chain.
Mark
I was just joking, as you already figured that out.
And again, what an awesome job by the bullpen committee!!
Somebody needs to give these guys a rest!
Maybe these are Destiny’s Dodgers?
I have not seen Kenly hit 97 for a while.
I love it he wanted to catch the final out.
He used to be a catcher – no problem!
I offer him 5 years/$70 million
Mark
I think that would be a really good contract.
After Kenley lost that game in SF, he has pitched much better.
He evaluated what he was doing wrong, and brought another pitch, to his arsenal.
He took that loss very seriously.