Dodgers Digest Los Angeles Dodgers Baseball Blog
On this episode of “Dugout Blues,” Jared Massey (Dodgers Nation) and I don’t really have a lot to talk about after the first two games of the Dodgers-Mets series.
Clayton Kershaw choked in the postseason again, unless he didn’t. Yeah, he didn’t pitch a shutout, but to pin the Game 1 loss on Kershaw alone is insane. For most other pitchers, 6 2/3 innings, 3 runs, 11 strikeouts is a great day. That’s the “curse” of being the best pitcher in the world.
Pedro Baez was about the last guy I wanted to see reliving Kershaw in the (admittedly tough) situation. Jared was OK with it because he loves every Dodger prospect who ever lived.
Oh, and the offense got thoroughly dominated by Jacob deGrom. Breaking news: It’s hard to score runs against good pitchers.
Game 2 was better, but not really before the seventh inning. Noah Syndergaard is also good and things looked bleak when he was blowing 101 MPH fastballs by hitters with ease. He wore down and was only throwing in the 95-98 MPH range by the seventh.
Then it happened. The “slide.” Chase Utley uncorked one of the dirtiest slides in the last few years. Yes, he tried to break up a potential double play that tied the game at two, but it doesn’t take away from the fact the “slide” was dirty. The intent wasn’t to break Tejada’s leg, obviously. The intent was to contact him enough to prevent the double play. There are takeout slides that are better than others, and this one was pretty bad. Have a listen to hear our full, unadulterated takes. They aren’t nearly has hot as others, and I’m surprised by the hottness of some of the takes out there.
We also briefly preview Games 3 and 4 of the series. What happens today will determine who pitches tomorrow. Let’s just hope it’s Alex Wood and not Kershaw.
We also touch briefly on the weird Eddy Julio Martinez situation and Dodger prospects in the Arizona Fall League (which begins tomorrow) … but we know you don’t care about that right now.
To end, we close with a Q&A
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Look for new episodes of “Dugout Blues” every Monday. Don’t forget to subscribe to the podcast and review us on iTunes. We want to make this the best podcast we can so we’re always looking for suggestions and ways to improve.
If you have questions you’d like us to answer or certain topics/players you want to hear more about, feel free to email us ([email protected]) or send us messages on Twitter (@JaredJMassey or @DustinNosler). You can also “Like” the podcast on Facebook. We always welcome audience participation.
