Dodgers Digest Los Angeles Dodgers Baseball Blog
Wait, the Dodgers still have to play the games? I thought they were just given the NL West after they made the trades? Damn.
Anyway, after the exciting news of yesterday, the Diamondbacks welcomed the Dodgers to Arizona for a three-game series, then the Dodgers shit themselves on multiple occasions to lose again in extras, 6-5.
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Tony Gonsolin took the mound and he didn’t have it today at all. After working around a walk in the 1st, he then issued a whopping four walks and a double in the 2nd, with two runs being plated on a Josh VanMeter double.
So despite a pen game tomorrow, Phil Bickford was forced to come in and escape the 2nd. He continued in the 3rd with a perfect frame, then gave up a single to start the 4th. He was relieved by Victor Gonzalez, who got off to a nice start with back-to-back strikeouts. However, after a steal, he issued a walk, and then got unlucky when a roller the other way against the shift drove in another run and make it 3-0.
In the 5th, Brusdar Graterol took over and worked around leading off the inning with a double and a walk. After a ground out advanced both runners, a comebacker led to a runner being thrown out at home, and then a lineout ended the threat.
Diamondbacks ace Zac Gallen is coming off a disastrous start against the Cubs, but he looked extremely sharp early against the Dodgers. He gave up just a single and a walk in the first five innings, facing a single batter with RISP that only happened due to an error.
Thankfully, Chris Taylor changed that to start the 6th, crushing a homer to left to cut the deficit to 3-1.
Max Muncy, Justin Turner, and Corey Seager promptly followed with back-to-back-to-back singles to load the bases with nobody out. After Will Smith struck out, AJ Pollock drilled a ball to deep right-center field, deep enough that he thought he hit a grand slam and did a bat drop and pose and everything … then the ball fell into the glove of Daulton Varsho for a sacrifice fly to make it 3-2.
Back to the Dodgers, Graterol continued in the 6th, allowing a single before exiting. Alex Vesia entered and saw his hot streak of effectiveness end. He immediately gave up a double to VanMeter to extend the deficit by a run, then issued a walk, a fly out to advance VanMeter that was actually a great play by Billy McKinney, and then another fly out to score him to make it 5-2 and give back all the progress from the previous half inning.
McKinney 🤯 pic.twitter.com/ohilkaiMuQ
— SportsNet LA (@SportsNetLA) July 31, 2021
The Diamondbacks were also not able to shut the Dodgers down, with Jake Faria entering and starting the 7th with a McKinney single and a Matt Beaty pinch-hit infield single. Taylor then ambushed the first pitch for a triple to deep right-center to plate two and cut the lead to 5-4.
That seemed to set the table with the heart of the order coming up, but Miguel Aguilar making his MLB debut turned into prime Randy Johnson when it mattered, making Muncy look foolish, getting JT to pop foul, and inducing a routine grounder from Seager to end the threat.
After Joe Kelly got a 1-2-3 7th, Brett de Geus took over for the Diamondbacks in the 8th and started with a walk to Smith and a single from Pollock to start the trouble. After Cody Bellinger continued his struggles with a foul out, McKinney grounded out and advanced both runners, which helped Albert Pujols pinch-hit and single through the shift to tie the game at 5-5.
Interestingly, Kenley Jansen got the 8th and started well with a strikeout on three pitches. However, a fly ball double with a .010 xBA, a walk, and then a single on a 3-0 count loaded the bases.
For whatever reason, Dave Roberts had nobody behind him, but it eventually worked out, with Kenley getting two strikeouts to close it, including the last one on a 3-2 count.
Tyler Clippard entered for the Diamondbacks looking to preserve the tie, hitting Turner with one out and then giving up a single to Seager that cornered the runners. However, he got Smith to drill a ball to third for a GIDP to escape.
In the other half of the 9th, Blake Treinen surrendered a double, but worked around it to send things into extras. The bats did jackshit against Matt Peacock in the 10th, and then the shitty snakes singled in the winning run off Jimmy Nelson in the 10th.
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62-42 on the year and 3 games back of the Giants.
Pen game against Merrill Kelly tomorrow at 2:10 PM HT/5:10 PM PT/8:10 PM ET.
