Shohei Ohtani got the start in today’s game against the Cardinals who countered with Mathew Liberatore. Ohtani pitched a clean first then led off the bottom of the 1st with a walk. He was erased on a double play ground out by Betts. Smith then struck out to end the inning. St. Louis went down in order in the second. In the bottom of the inning, Freeman singled, but then Teo, Pages and Rojas all made outs.
In the top of the 3rd, Walker singled and stole second. Pages struck out. Scott grounded out sending Walker to third. Donovan singled scoring Walker. Hererra struck out. Wall led off the bottom of the inning with a double. Freeland was out on a foul bunt popup. Ohtani homered to left center, his 39th and the Dodgers led 2-1. Betts doubled. Smith grounded out to short. Freeman had an infield single moving Betts to third. Teo flied out to end the inning.
Ohtani got the Cards out in order in the 4th. Pages led off the Dodger 4th with a single. He moved to second on a wild pitch. He then stole third and scored on a throwing error. Dodgers up 3-1. Rojas, Call and Freeland made outs to end the inning. Wrobleski took over for Ohtani. Gorman struck out. Walker singled and Pages hit a ground rule double moving Walker to third. Scott struck out, and Donovan grounded out to end the inning.
Ohtani led off the 5th with a walk, but was stranded when Betts lined out, Smith struck out and Freeman flied out to left. In the top of the 6th, Hererra walked, and Burleson then singled to right with Herrera taking third. Nootbaar hit a sharp grounder to Betts who threw to first, with Herrera scoring on the play. Burleson safe at second. Winn singled to right with Burleson taking third. Gorman struck out and Winn stole second. Walker then grounded to Wrobleski who threw him out at first. 3-2 LA.
Leahy, who had replaced Liberatore in the fifth, struck out the side in the 6th getting Hernandez, Pages and Rojas out. In the top of the 7th, Pablo Pages singled and moved to second on Scott’s sacrifice bunt. Donovan flied out to left and Herrera struck out to end the inning. In the bottom of the 7th, Leahy gave up a single to Call but got Freeland to hit into a double play. Jo Jo Romero relieved Leahy and struck out Ohtani to end the inning.
Top of the eighth, Vesia replaced Wrobleski. Burleson singled to right. Nootbaar flied out to center and Winn won a long at bat singling to left sending Burleson to second. Pozo PH for Gorman and flied out to center. Walker singled to center scoring Burleson, Pages threw to third trying to nail Winn, but the throw was late, Freeland, thinking he had a shot at getting Walker at second fired the ball past Rojas into right and Winn scored. 4-3 St. Louis. Pages was intentionally walked and Scott struck out ending the inning.
In the bottom of the 8th, Betts and Smith grounded out. Freeman singled to right, his 3rd hit. O’Reily replaced Romero and Teo grounded out to end the 8th. In the top of the 9th, Stewart replaced Vesia. Donovan singled to right and Stewart then hit Herrera with a pitch. Burleson lined out to center with Donovan taking third. Nootbaar doubled scoring Donovan and sending Herrera to third. Winn walked loading the bases. Saggese struck out and Walker flied out to center. In the bottom of the 9th, Pages flied out to center. Conforto PH for Rojas and grounded out to first. Muncy PH for Call and walked. Freeland then grounded out to second on a 3-2 pitch to end the game.
After starting off with a bang against Liberatore, the Dodger offense was totally shut down by the Cardinals bull pen. They were 2-8 with runners in scoring position and hit into two rally killing double plays. They had 8 hits, 2 walks and struck out 6 times. The Dodger bullpen gave up 10 of the Cardinals 12 hits. Padres scored 2 in the 9th to beat Arizona 3-2. Miller got the save. LA’s lead down to 2 games. We will see what kind of heart this team has. 6 of their next 9 games against winning teams. Toronto and the Padres. They play the Angels three in Anaheim next week. Their backs are up against the wall. We will see what kind of team we really have.
AFFILATE SCORES
OKC 6 El Paso 7
The Comets jumped out to a 6-0 lead by the 7 inning and the bullpen allowed 7 runs to El Paso in the last three frames for the loss. Ward was 2-4 with 3 driven in, Ramos homered for one of his two hits and drove in the other 3 runs, Gauthier was 2-2 with a run scored. Romero gave up 3 hits, a walk, no runs and struck out 3 in his 5 innings. Gervase, 2 runs, Klein 3, and Henriquez, 2 gave up the 7 runs over the last 2.1 innings. Henriquez got the loss.
Tulsa 14 Corpus Christie 3
The Drillers scored 3 in the top of the first and then scored in every inning of the game, never looking back to pound the Hooks, 14-3. James Tibbs III, acquired in the trade with Boston for Dustin May, was 4-4 with 4 RBIs and he walked twice. 2 of his hits were solo homers. Keith was 3-5 with 3 driven in, one of his hits his 11th homer, a 2-run shot in the first inning. Newell and Rhodes had 2 hit games, Newell drove in 2, as did Young whose sole hit was a double. Fox started and went 4 innings allowing 2 runs. Suarez pitched 2.2 innings of scoreless relief and got the win, his 3rd.
Great Lakes 1 Lansing 3
The Loons lost a strong pitching performance by Wyatt Crowell who went 6 scoreless innings as the starter. They had a 1-0 lead on a groundout by Wagner in the 4th that scored Quintero who had tripled. Evan Shaw came in to pitch the 7th and allowed all three Lansing runs. Great Lakes only managed 3 hits in the loss.
Rancho 2 Lake Elsinore 4
Rancho had a 2-0 lead after 4 innings then were held scoreless by the Storm’s pitchers. The Storm scored 2 in the 7th to tie and 2 in the top of the 9th for the win. Rancho had 7 hits but made 2 errors. Foeller went 6 scoreless innings allowing just 2 hits, walking 3 and striking out 5. Vilchez blew the save allowing the 2 runs in the 7th. The loss went to Brown who pitched the 9th. Vargas hit a homer, but the only Quake with more than 1 hit was Meza who was 2-3. Quakes at 54-47 still first in the Cal Leagues Southern division.
Born June 14th, 1948, in Los Angeles California. AKA The Bear
A disappointing loss to be sure. Games they lose that they should have won are the hardest to take.
Why should we have won?
We got outhit….their bullpen was far superior, they got more clutch hits. Honestly, I think we deserved to lose…again.
Sorry to be so brutally honest….
TM
We were winning the freaking game 3 to 1 going to the 8th inning. We should have won the game.
So you think anyone with a 2 run lead with 2 innings to go SHOULD WIN the game. Hmmm I don’t know Ohio…2 innings is 22% of the game. That still seems like a lot of time to score runs to me. I think your position would be strengthened if the Dodgers had a 2 run lead going into the 9th.
If their bullpen does it’s job, hell yeah they should win.
Not necessarily this game specifically. Had the BP done their job, they could have won.
The bullpen might have done the job if Kopech, Phillips, Duran, or Miller were in the pen.
Yes, it might have.
Just so everyone can understand the level of suck we are seeing on a daily basis. Dodgers relievers rank
21st in ERA
25th in most walks allowed.
27th in home runs allowed.
Only 3 other clubs in MLB have allowed more home runs than the Dodgers bullpen.
I think it’s important to recognize and acknowledge suck of this magnitude. Rock bottom is coming very soon guys. They stink.
The suck also extends to the offense since late June. It’s bleak. The only thing good they can rely on right now is consistently good SP.
This is true
Quit being so damned negative. As long as you have been watching the game, you know it can change quickly. Frankly, your opinion stinks. You are entitled to it, but it still stinks.
I just call it like I see it Bear. I know it’s terribly disappointing, but it is what it is. They couldn’t beat the Cardinals. How do you think they’re going to perform against the Blue Jays and Padres?
when they fall out of first place, don’t say I didn’t warn everyone over here.
I don’t care if they fall out of first place. Might light a fire under them. These two series will show us what kind of team they are. I am not disappointed Scott. I have seen this happen year after year to not only the Dodgers, but other teams as well. I just do not dwell on the negative things that happen. I think they will play as best they can, if they lose a bunch of games, and fall out of first place, well, it has happened before.
Well I care. I think we know what kind of team they are this year. It’s almost mid August already. The season is almost over. They’ve been losing a bunch of games since they started the season 10-2 in April.
I don’t see them suddenly “going to the whip” and bad relievers suddenly turning into Mariano Rivera and hitters breaking out of their summer long slumps.
Although I admit it is in the realm of possibility.
Good for you. It is not mid-August it is the 7th. They have played 6 effing games. Wait until the month is over before you bury these guys. Its baseball and it can change at the drop of a hat. If they lose, that is on them. Nothing you or I or anyone else can do. But there are other things going on in my life that I find much more important than Dodger baseball. The game is a form of entertainment I like to watch. I am not going to lose my mind if they don’t make it to the playoffs or World Series. I will just look forward to a better year next year, possibly with some new faces and less injuries to key players.
I think it is important to recognize and acknowledge suck, especially when it lingers into August.
Hoping we do see that abrupt change that some over here are claiming will happen any day now.
I disagree since they have the EXACT same record they had last year on the same date. Did they suck last year? They won the World Series.
Not the same team.
Last year their bullpen ranked 4th in ERA. This year they rank 21st. The relief pitching and defense is much worse than last year. Although the starting pitching seems to be better now with Glasnow, Snell and Ohtani in the rotation.
This year also feels different, since they’ve been playing around .500 since Mid April.
I hope I am wrong though.
Frankly Scott, I am more concerned about losing what little vision I have in the next few years and not being able to enjoy watching games. One bad season is not going to make me quit loving the game or the Dodgers.
And the pen has gotten rid of several of the most egregious performers. They are just now getting back to full strength and Scott has not even returned yet. Will be bolstered by arms like Sheehan when Ohtani can finally start more than four innings. No, they are not the same team. Yes, they have been, but I prefer to wait until the end of the month before making any serious judgement. Except for the games with Toronto and the Padres, every team they are playing is barely at .500.
Unfortunately, the Dodgers have not been all that entertaining of late. More like frustrating.
But, my life will not change one bit whether the
Dodgers win the WS or not. Except if they win, I will get a new T-Shirt. 😃
Definitely not entertaining at all.
For once, you’re right: they suck. Congrats?
You are wrong so often, your batting average is in Conforto territory.
swing and a miss buddy
According to SI, the Dodgers are calling up Justin Dean.
Ruiz going down?
No move announced yet, should know sometime on Friday.
Justin Dean? Why?
Replace Ruiz in my estimation. Just as fast, better hitter and defender.
Insurance in case Call is injured
Not even close.
Who starts for the Dodgers in the WC Elimination Game?
Landon Knack is an option.
I doubt very seriously if Knack makes it back to the majors.
Sure hope it isn’t a bullpen game.
They won two critical games in the playoffs with a bullpen game. Twice they shut the opposition down.
brilliant! Who’s the opener? I go with Trevino or Klein
Stewart to start. Then anyone. Then Kiké to pitch to the bottom of the order. Then Vesia, Casparius and Banda, order depends on where we are in opponents lineup. Then Miggy to close. Gotta score 8. Probably more. Probably a lot more.
There has been some speculation that Kike will not make it back. His elbow is not responding to treatment.
Question. Do players accrue MLB service time while on the 40 man roster and not on the 26 man roster?
That is a Jeff question, but I will check and see what I can find out. Ok found the answer. They get time for each day they spend on the 26-man active roster or for each day they are on the IL. Which means all 14 players on the IL are accruing service time.
Thanks Bear.
Anytime Ohio
I’m curious; how long of a buildup does Ohtani need?
According to the stats I just read, he’s pitched in 8 games, gone only 19 innings, and the team is 4-4 in those games.
This bullpen is stressed enough without this continuing.
And another thing, is this team waiting til September to turn it on, or is what we’ve been watching the last several weeks who they are this year?
I was surprised he didn’t go out for the 5 th inning. He should be built up now for that. Plus he was pitching well.
We will find out. Trending towards latter.
If so, it was a bad offseason not going younger.
I still believe though.
Michael suggested it, so if “lighting a fire in their hearts” is in play to “fix” the Dodgers this season (which I don’t think is the case), ..but if it is.. then someone within this team needs to stand up and initiate that very thing NOW.
Dean?
Here’s some good news. From The Athletic this morning:
“Wins Above Replacement has its flaws, particularly for pitchers, but it does account for this sort of thing. So once you consider park factors and look at the projected WAR category, you’re probably circling the Mets or Padres for the best bullpen in baseball.”
I think maybe we knew that already.
If healthy in October I like our depth in the pen but our starting four is the best in baseball. Our bats just need to wake up and I think they will. Besides, who’d ever have thought we could win a WS with the 3 man starting rotation we threw out there last year. October is like a box of chocolates. We’ve had lots of great regular seasons with poor post season results. Maybe this year the reverse will be true.
I think a healthy and productive Tommy Edmund is critical to our success, and unfortunately he has been neither. After last year’s playoff run, I was convinced we had our starting CF or 2B, pick one. Tommy improves our defense and lengthens the line-up. I am beginning to think his role on the team is a super utility player. I hope i am wrong.
Regardless, without him, I hold my breath when balls are driven deep into the outfield—Conforto and Teoscar are not fast, and Pages struggles with balls over his head. This won’t play well in the playoffs.
I am surprised the Dodgers did not do more to solidify the outfield. I heard Orel state the other night that Conforto and the Dodgers completely revamped his swing, which almost guarantees he won’t “get hot” as he has in previous years.
i agree with others this team needs a spark. Where it comes from will help tell the story of this season.
Edman will not be back until his ankle is not a major issue. They do miss his versatility.
Scherzer VS Kershaw in game one Friday. Scherzer is 2-1 with a 4.39 ERA in 8 games. He has pitched 41innings allowing 9 homers and 26 runs. He is not the Max Scherzer of 4 years ago. He is averaging 1 K an inning.
Then hopefully he won’t shut us out!
On this date in 2024, the Dodgers were 66-49, three games up on their pursuer. This year they are 66-49, two games up on the Padres. Same record, different year.
And Scott has been equally negative as well. Tear it down AF!!!!!!
blob:https://ladodgerchronicles.com/b3a2fc61-c98a-42fb-becd-90bd24f9ffaa
blob:https://ladodgerchronicles.com/e29c5823-1e5b-426d-825f-6db37b3ebf8b
That goes straight to the error message Cassidy.
The White Sox made moves involving two former Dodgers today, selecting Jacob Amaya, and DFAing Gus Varland
Well, I’m out of the hospital and actually watched a Dodger game on TV. I have more tests today. Somethings wrong with my bladder.
Thoughts on last night’s loss to the Cards.
Glad you are back home Phil. Nasty bladder huh? Not a good thing.