Dodgers Digest Los Angeles Dodgers Baseball Blog
The Dodgers (5-3) have Julio Urias on the mound this evening, as they look to bounce back after a disappointing loss last night. The eighth inning implosion wasn’t a single individuals’ fault, but a handful of mistakes piled on top of each other. An early error by Justin Turner, followed by control issues from Blake Treinen, started things off poorly. Dave Roberts then proceeded to make a questionable decision, walking a struggling Eduardo Escobar to bring up Christian Walker with the bases loaded. Due to a handful of positional switches throughout the game, this put Mookie Betts in center and Cody Bellinger at first. On the go-ahead double by Walker, Betts looked to be about six inches away from making the catch — which is roughly the difference in height/reach between him and Bellinger. It happens.
Normally a loss like this is fine, but to have the game all but won, and then to blow it in the eighth is a tough one to lose with the shortened season. This puts the team at 5-3, trailing the Padres and Rockies in the NL West by one game each.
In 2019, the Dodgers were 71-39 with a 15-game lead heading into August. In 2018, they were 59-49 and a half game back, and in 2017 they were 74-31, with a 14 game lead. Obviously, we’re only eight games in, but their current one game deficit heading into August is their largest in recent years. Luckily, they have the best team, but unfortunately with only 52 theoretical games to go, any losing streak puts them in serious trouble. At the same time, it’s also likely the season won’t finish and none of this matters! But for now, the Dodgers look to get one back and gain some ground in the NL West.
Also, as a side note, in the current expanded playoff format, they would currently make the playoffs as the 7th seed.
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|---|---|---|---|
| 5:10 p.m. | Phoenix | ||
| 2B | Muncy (L) | 2B | K. Marte (S) |
| RF | Betts | 1B | Vargas (S) |
| SS | Seager (L) | CF | S. Marte |
| DH | Turner | 3B | Escobar (S) |
| LF | Pederson (L) | DH | Walker |
| CF | Pollock | LF | Peralta (L) |
| 3B | Rios (L) | C | C. Kelly |
| C | Smith | SS | Ahmed |
| 1B | Beaty (L) | RF | Locastro |
| P | Urias (L) | P | Weaver (R) |
The lineup shifts significantly today, as a struggling Bellinger is given the day off, while a surging Corey Seager moves up in the lineup. AJ Pollock will make just his third start of the season and his first in center field since the 2019 season. Edwin Rios and his 1.600 OPS will make his second consecutive start of the season, this time at third base. Justin Turner will DH as Max Muncy shifts to second and Chris Taylor sits. Matt Beaty will start at first base and play his first innings of 2020.
Urias will make his second start of the season after a solid outing against the Giants, where he allowed just one run over five innings. To combat the left-handed Urias, the Diamondbacks will run out a versatile lineup featuring three switch hitters, as David Peralta will be the only fully left-handed batter in their starting lineup. Urias has reverse splits over his short career so far, so we’ll see how that decision works out for Arizona.
The Dodgers will face the right-handed Luke Weaver, who looks to rebound from his previous start against the Padres. He gave up six runs over three innings, but he also had six strikeouts in those three innings, which bodes poorly for the Dodgers, who have loved striking out early in games recently.
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Tony Gonsolin is optioned after his four quality innings yesterday, while the 25-year-old Mitch White will be on the active roster for the first time in his career.
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Manfred continues to place blame on the players, which is nothing new, meanwhile players and teams continue to get sick. The Red Sox announced that Eduardo Rodriguez will be out for the season as he’s still dealing with heart inflammation after getting COVID-19. Hopefully he ends up totally fine, but it’s just a reminder that professional athletes are just as susceptible as you and I, and Manfred placing blame on the players is an awful look.
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First pitch is at 5:10 PT on SNLA.
