Dodgers Digest Los Angeles Dodgers Baseball Blog
The Dodgers (53-28) head to San Diego for three games with the Padres (33-46). The Dodgers have won five of the six games they’ve played against the Padres this year. The teams last faced each other in early May, a series in which the Dodgers took the first two games, while the third was rained out (to be made up September 2).
Since the two teams last met, the Padres have gone 21-26, and currently sit in fourth place in the NL West.
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Dodgers
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Padres
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7:10 p.m.
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Anaheim
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LF
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Taylor |
LF
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Pirela | |
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SS
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Hernández |
CF
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Margot | |
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3B
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Turner |
1B
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Myers | |
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1B
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Bellinger |
RF
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Renfroe | |
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2B
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Forsythe |
3B
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Spangenberg | |
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C
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Barnes |
SS
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Aybar | |
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CF
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Thompson | C | Hedges | |
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RF
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Puig |
2B
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Asuaje | |
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P
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Wood (L) |
P
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Richard (L) |
Alex Wood (1.86 ERA, 2.13 FIP, 2.61 DRA) gets the ball for his twelfth start of the season. The Dodgers have not lost a game he’s started since the end of April. This will be Wood’s first start against the Padres this season. He pitched two innings of relief against them on April 5, and didn’t allow any runs or hits.
Clayton Richard (4.42 ERA, 4.08 FIP, 4.88 DRA) has faced the Dodgers twice in 2017. He shut them out through eight innings in the second game of the season, then allowed five runs in five innings against them on May 6. Richard is having a season that makes sense for him, given his past performance and current trends: his ERA and FIP are both above four; his strikeout rate of 16.6%, which while up from years past, is still below league average; and his groundball rate of 58.5% leads the National League.
Richard will face a righty-heavy lineup, with Cody Bellinger and Wood being the only lefties in it. Corey Seager is once again sitting, as are Joc Pederson and Chase Utley.
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We’re eleven days away from the All-Star Game, which you shouldn’t expect to impact Clayton Kershaw‘s schedule:
Roberts said Kershaw would probably start the Sunday before the All-Star Game, even if it costs Kershaw the ASG start.
— Ken Gurnick (@kengurnick) July 1, 2017
Meanwhile, down at Triple-A:
I don’t know how serious this all is, but Ike Davis is currently throwing a bullpen and a lot of people are watching. #Dodgers
— Alex Freedman (@azfreedman) June 30, 2017
Ike Davis is a first baseman who signed a minor-league deal with the Dodgers this offseason. He’s been hurt for much of the season, so he’s only played in 27 games for Oklahoma City, but he’s slashing a non-noteworthy .206/.257/.381 when he does play. Davis had two pitching appearances for the Oakland A’s in 2015, and is the proud owner of a 0.00 ERA (in 2 IP).
In other Triple-A position-player-being-converted-to-pitcher news:
Brett Eibner, whom #Dodgers are trying to convert from OF to OF-P, has developed a "sore arm," Dave Roberts said. #Dodgers
— Bill Shaikin (@BillShaikin) July 1, 2017
For what it’s worth, Brett Eibner is currently playing right field for OKC.
And … this was apparently a thing that happened:
Chase Utley, Logan Forsythe, Austin Barnes, Kike' Hernandez taking early BP topless. Very #TopGun Volleyball scene stuff. #MotherGoose
— David Vassegh (@THEREAL_DV) June 30, 2017
Doesn’t seem to be any photographic evidence of it, though.
