Dodgers Digest Los Angeles Dodgers Baseball Blog
Facing off against the Giants for the final time in the regular season, with just 25 games remaining before the playoffs begin, the Dodgers’ offense struggled against a bullpen game while Walker Buehler picked a rough time for his worst start since 2019.
Naturally after 19 games against one another, the Giants pulled out the 6-4 victory to take 10 of the 19 this season and lead the NL West by a game over the Dodgers as a result.
Now 87-50 this season, the Giants hold the best record in baseball with the Dodgers tied with the Rays at 86-51.
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It was just the third time this season Buehler allowed 4 or more earned runs, with the other two outings coming in April against the Reds (5) and in May against the Mariners (4), and was the first time he’d given up 6 or more since doing so twice against the Rockies in 2019. An ugly day, Buehler hit for himself in the top of the 4th to end his outing, going just 3 IP allowing six runs on seven hits and one walk to just one strikeout.
The lack of highlights built into this recap probably tells you just about all you need to know as the team managed just four hits, all singles, on the way to their two runs across the first eight innings.
Thanks to an error on a ground ball off Austin Barnes bat and a 425-foot homer by Albert Pujols against Jake McGee (the ninth pitcher of the game for the Giants), the Dodgers cut the lead down to 6-4 after 10 batters had gone down in order since loading the bases in the fifth.
Max Muncy rolled a ball through the left side to bring the tying run to the plate, but Mookie Betts went down looking on a 2-2 fastball and Justin Turner‘s fly ball to foul territory in right was ruled to have been caught before touching the netting.
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The Dodgers head to St. Louis to face the Cardinals tomorrow at 1:15 p.m., a truly wonderful schedule, with Max Scherzer on the mound. The Giants depart for Colorado with a 1 p.m. first pitch against the Rockies who are 45-24 at home.
