Aaaaand that was quick. So long, Oakland! Two games in something like 18 hours, and the series will be over. Baseball schedules are weird.
Dodgers
|
A’s
|
|||
---|---|---|---|---|
12:35 p.m. PT
|
Oakland, Ca.
|
|||
SS
|
Rollins
|
CF
|
Burns
|
|
LF
|
Crawford
|
1B
|
Canha
|
|
1B
|
Gonzalez
|
3B
|
Valencia
|
|
3B
|
Turner
|
C
|
Phegley
|
|
RF
|
Ethier
|
LF |
Smolinski
|
|
C
|
Grandal
|
DH
|
Butler
|
|
DH
|
Van Slyke
|
RF
|
Reddick
|
|
CF |
Pederson
|
SS
|
Semien
|
|
2B
|
Hernandez
|
2B
|
Sogard
|
That’s partially why I don’t care about “winning series,” though I know many fans do. At the end of the day, all that matters is games won, not series won. If you win two of three in back-to-back series, or sweep one and then lose two of three, the end result is the same. Games, not series.
Anyway, as expected with a day game after an extra-innings night game, particularly one featuring a different-handed pitcher (righty Jesse Chavez), there’s plenty of lineup changes. Yasiel Puig sits with that sore hamstring, and Scott Van Slyke is at DH, so both Andre Ethier and Carl Crawford get to play. A.J. Ellis is out after his huge night last night; Yasmani Grandal is in.
As we’ve said a few times, there’s another day off tomorrow (and another on Monday), so there should be no concerns about wearing out the bullpen if Alex Wood doesn’t go far. Which is to say: Unless it’s a massive blowout in either direction, please let’s see Kenley Jansen today.
Puig, by the way, reportedly had good results from his MRI:
Puig's MRI showed very mild strain. Day to day. Medical staff thinks he will avoid DL.
— Dylan Hernández (@dylanohernandez) August 19, 2015
See you in 2016, Yasiel.