Dodgers Digest Los Angeles Dodgers Baseball Blog
The Dodgers opened their final road series of the regular season in San Diego on Tuesday night, but they failed to set a new franchise win record when Craig Kimbrel served up shrimp and a 4-3 walk-off loss to the Padres in extra innings.
The Dodgers squandered more than several opportunities. They went 1-for-17 with runners in scoring position and left 14 men on base. Justin Turner also made two costly fielding errors at third base.
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Blake Snell made 23 pitches in the first inning, but the Dodgers failed to score despite a leadoff Mookie Betts single. In fact, the Betts base hit to start the series was the only hit the Dodgers had through the first five innings versus Snell.
But Snell lived in a 3-2 count all night. Austin Barnes and Betts took advantage with consecutive walks with one out in the top of the third, though Trea Turner‘s line drive was snared by Manny Machado at third who doubled up Barnes at second. The Dodgers stranded another two runners in the 4th despite a leadoff walk to Freddie Freeman and a catching error on Jake Cronenworth at second base.
Snell was done after five innings and 95 pitches. He allowed the lone Mookie base hit with six strikeouts and three walks.
On the other side, Tyler Anderson found himself in a mess right away in a 21-pitch first inning, no thanks to some bad luck. Juan Soto hit a hard single up the middle, Justin Turner‘s bumble at third base extended the inning on what should have been a double play ball hit by Machado, and Brandon Drury doubled to left field to give the Friars runners at second and third with two outs. Wil Myers then poked a seeing-eye single past the Dodgers’ infield, and two runs scored.
But apart from that blip, Anderson pitched efficiently got through six innings on just 71 pitches. He gave up just the two runs on three hits and walked none, striking out three to keep the Dodgers in the game.
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Anderson did buy enough time for the Dodgers to get to the Padres’ bullpen in the sixth. For the third time in the game, L.A. got the leadoff man on base. Trea Turner managed the Dodgers’ second base hit of the game, a single off reliever Nick Martinez, and the speedy shortstop flustered Martinez and got into scoring position when Martinez threw the ball away on a pickoff attempt. After a walk to Freddie Freeman, Justin Turner walked to load the bases with one out for Muncy.
Disastrously, it seemed like Muncy grounded into a double play to end the inning, but Dave Roberts had a challenge finally (and correctly) go his way to make it a 2-1 game. Robert Suarez took over on the mound for San Diego, and Chris Taylor jumped all over him for a run-scoring single up the middle to tie the game at two runs apiece.
But the Padres pen was able to wiggle out of trouble there and for the next two innings as well to keep the Dodgers at two runs going into the 9th.
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For the Dodgers, Evan Phillips took over for Anderson in the bottom of the seventh with a scoreless frame, and Caleb Ferguson got the ball in the eighth. Austin Nola started that inning by doubling to left field after it clanged off CT3’s glove. Ferguson walked Ha-Seong Kim and Soto to load the bases, putting the game in serious trouble. Roberts went to Chris Martin to face Mannny Machado with the bases loaded. He got the job done and challenged Machado with a great cutter to strike out the slugger for the second out, but JT got himself into another bumble at third base on a grounder hit by Brandon Drury which allowed the Padres to take a 3-2 lead.
The Padres took the Dodgers’ sloppy play and raised them two errors in the 9th. Trea Turner smoked a double, his 39th of the year, to lead off the inning against closer Josh Hader. Smith reached on a rare fielding error by shortstop Kim, and a passed ball off Jorge Alfaro‘s glove allowed Trea Turner to score the tying run.
Tommy Kahnle pitched a scoreless ninth to send the game to extra innings, but Craig Kimbrel walked in the winning run in the bottom of the 10th to give the Padres the 4-3 win.
The Dodgers failed to set a new franchise win record and stay at 106 wins, but they have eight more games to get it done.
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For those who missed it in the Game Thread, check out this raffle for the final homestand.
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National League ERA leader Julio UrÃas (17-7, 2.25 ERA, 185 ERA+) makes his 30th start of the season Wednesday. The Padres counter with right-hander Joe Musgrove (10-7, 3.12 ERA, 4.69 K/9). First pitch is at 6:40 PM PST on SportsNet LA from Petco Park.
