Dodgers Digest Los Angeles Dodgers Baseball Blog
The Dodgers might be good again, folks. Last night, the Dodgers won their eighth consecutive game, matching the Yankees for the longest currently-active win streak in baseball. The Giants also lost their second straight game, meaning the Dodgers gained ground once again and now find themselves only 1.5 games back of first place in the NL West (and for the best record in all of baseball). The Dodgers also now sit 11.5 games up in the Wild Card race of the Padres and the Reds, who tied the Padres for the second Wild Card spot yesterday. Today the Dodgers look for another series win and their 13th win in the last 14 games.
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| 1:10 PM | Los Angeles | ||
| CF | Nimmo (L) | 2B | Turner |
| 2B | McNeil (L) | 3B | Muncy (L) |
| 1B | Alonso | 1B | Pujols |
| RF | Conforto (L) | LF | Pollock |
| 3B | Davis | SS | Seager (L) |
| LF | Smith (L) | RF | Taylor |
| SS | Villar (S) | C | Smith |
| C | Sisco (L) | CF | Bellinger (L) |
| P | Hill (L) | P | Scherzer (R) |
Max Scherzer gets his 23rd start of the season tonight and his fourth as a Dodger. In 16 1/3 innings as a Dodger (one of his starts was rain-shortened in Philly), Scherzer has allowed 12 hits, four runs and one home run. He’s also issued only three walks while striking out 23, and opponents have slashed .194/.231/.238 against him despite posting a .287 BABIP, which isn’t unsustainably low. Somehow, none of Scherzer’s 19 starts as a National this year came against the Mets, but this will be his second look at the Mets as a Dodger. Scherzer started in New York last time out and allowed four hits and two runs over six innings. He also recorded his first RBI of the season on a sac fly, giving him an RBI before recording a hit in 2021.
Old friend Rich Hill gets the ball for the Mets for the sixth time (fifth start) since joining the Mets in July. Hill started the season in Tampa and posted a 3.87 ERA in 19 starts for them before they moved him to New York. Hill pitched exactly five innings in each of his first three Mets appearances, and his lone “relief appearance” came after a Carlos Carrasco start was suspended by rain. The game picked up the next day in the second inning and Hill started that game, allowing three runs in three innings. In his last start in San Francisco, Hill allowed one single over the first three innings. He got the leadoff hitter in the fourth, and then allowed a double and four consecutive singles before being removed from the game with six hits and two runs charged to him.
Dodger fans should be familiar enough with Hill, who spent three and a half seasons in LA. He mainly throws two pitches, a fastball (47.5 percent of the time this season, averaging 88.2 MPH) and a curveball (38.1 percent of the time, averaging 71.9 MPH).
Justin Turner gets the day off today, with Max Muncy starting at third and Albert Pujols getting a start at first against a lefty. Cody Bellinger starts in center and Chris Taylor gets the start in right.
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Mookie Betts worked out on the field today.
Betts was running at full-speed and could return to the lineup next week.
Clayton Kershaw could finally be nearing his next step to returning.
Kershaw could throw a bullpen next week after throwing from 120 feet today.
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Andre Jackson was sent to Rancho instead of back to OKC.
Mitch White was also sent to Rancho, which is a slightly closer trip to San Diego than Oklahoma City. The Dodgers are off Monday, and could try to buy some extra rest by using one of White or Jackson in the Padre series.
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First pitch is scheduled for 1:10 PDT and will be shown on Sportsnet LA and Fox Sports 1.
