The Dodgers just got off a 7-2 road trip, and experiencing an excruciating 3-6 home stand.
Home Stand
The Runs Scored in the home stand was 43, and the runs against was 41. The run differential was underwater until the last game on the home stand: Dodgers won 10-0.
Batting WRISP on the home stand, the Dodgers were 20-88 (.227).
On the home stand, only 4 games had RA < 6. The Dodgers won 3 of those, their only wins.
Now for the road trip.
The Runs Scored in the home stand was 53, and the runs against was 19.
Batting WRISP on the road trip, the Dodgers were 28-97 (.289).
On the home stand, only 4 games had RA < 6. The Dodgers won 3 of those, their only wins.
On the road trip, no runs against was > 4. Only two games reached 4, and one of those was the ten inning game when the Dbacks scored 2 in the 10th off Nabil Crismatt. The other game the Dodgers lost on the trip was a bullpen game started by Michael Grove. But that was more of a great game by Blue Jays pitcher, Kevin Gausman. BTW, maybe it is time to stop trying to push Grove to more than 1.0 inning. He seems automatic for 1.0 IP, but loses it after that.
The big difference was the starting pitching. Hitting WRISP was much better as well, but the pitching was the big difference.
So now the two teams that were supposed to meet for the last 4 NLCS , but only met in the first two. They are once again the heavy favorites to meet in the 2024 NLCS. The two teams will be meeting for the first time in 2024 this weekend.
The overall offense and overall pitching stats are very comparable. The one area that seems out of whack batting WRISP.
The big difference? Look at the WRISP. This is the same problem the Dodgers have had the last several years. They seemed to have remedied the starting pitching issues from last year, the hitting WRISP still needs to improve. Maybe once Shohei Ohtani actually begins to be mediocre while hitting WRISP, the overall numbers will improve.
MiLB GAME SUMMARY REPORTS
OKC Baseball Club 5 – Salt Lake City Bees 2
Blake Treinen started for OKC and pitched 1.0 inning. He retired the side in order and struck out 2 batters. Blake should be joing the MLB team soon.
Elieser Hernández relieved Treinen and pitched 5.0 scoreless innings. He allowed 3 hits and 1 BB with 5 Ks.
Nick Ramirez and Kevin Gowdy each pitched a scoreless inning. Stephen Gonsalves entered in the 9th and immediately walked the first two batters that was followed by two run scoring singles. After he struck out Chad Wallach, Michael Petersen relieved Gonsalves, struck out his 1st batter and then got a ground out to end the threat and inning.
OKC packaged 5 singles, 7 BB, 3 WP, 1 PB, and a sac fly into 5 runs. In the first, Miguel Vargas drew a walk, stole 2nd, and scored on a 2 out single by Andre Lipcius.
In the 4th, Andre Lipcius opened with a single. He moved to 2nd on a WP and 3rd on a Kevin Padlo single. He scored on a Hunter Feduccia sac fly.
In the 7th, Kody Hoese opened with a single. Jonathan Araúz and Chris Owings each drew a BB to load the bases. The first WP scored Hoese. Miguel Vargas drew a BB to reload the bases. A second WP scored Araúz, and a PB scored Owings.
That was the entirety of the OKC offense. Pitching won this one.
Andre Lipcius had 2 singles for the only OKC player with 2 hits. OKC was 2-12 WRISP.
Tulsa Drillers and Springfield Cardinals game was rained out. The two teams will play a DH on Friday, May 3.
Wisconsin Timber Rattlers (Milwaukee) 4 – Great Lakes Loons 1
Peter Heubeck issued 2 walks and allowed a single in the 1st inning. A run scored on a DP. In the third, a single, SB, and second single scored another run. Once again, walks were a big problem. Heubeck issued 6 BB, 4 singles, and allowed 2 runs.
Franklin De La Paz allowed 2 runs on a BB, HBP, and triple.
The Loons scored their only run and 2 hits in the 6th. Luis Rodriguez singled and scored on Alex Freeland’s triple.
Loons’ pitchers did not allow another base runner in the final 3.1 innings.
Modesto Nuts (Seattle) 13 – Rancho Cucamonga Quakes 2
In the first 5.0 innings, Patrick Copen and Felix Cabrera allowed 7 runs on 8 hits and 6 walks, including 2 HRs. They did strike out 7.
Rancho were being no-hit for the first 7.0 IP. The Quakes had three walks and a sac fly to score a run in the 7th.
The no-no was broken up in the 8th. Juan Alonso opened the inning with a HBP. He moved to 3rd after a Josue De Paula double, the Quakes first hit of the game. Jake Gelof singled home Alonso for the Quakes second and final hit and run.
The next group of Quakes relievers did not do any better. In the final 3.0 IP, the Nuts scored 6 runs on 5 hits and 6 BB from 3 Quakes relievers.
The Quakes are running into a much better team in the Nuts.
Not a game to be remembered.
WRISP has been a sore spot for this team for several years. Their approach with men on base is pitiful. I see way too many guys swinging for the fences, or swinging at the first pitch trying to get something to happen instead of hitting a pitch they can drive. Freddie and Mookie so far are the best in these situations. The seven hundred-million-dollar man needs to learn from these two. Ohtani needs a different mindset with this team than he did with the Angels where it was just him and Trout and a lot of praying.
Innings pitched Starters:
Atlanta 17th
LA 21st
Early comparisons. Make them again after 1/3 of the season.
Read in the paper this month Urias’ case has been settled. He got 3 years probation. He’s a free agent now and some team is going to sign him. His parent club could sure use him.
“BTW, maybe it is time to stop trying to push Grove to more than 1.0 inning. He seems automatic for 1.0 IP, but loses it after that.” — Sometimes what is happening is opposite to what should happen. He has been built up as a starter so going 3 innings should be a breeze.
Someone please tell me what there is to gain by having Knack back at OKC. He pitched well in his three starts, so now they put him on the bus and tell him to cool his heels until someone gets injured?
Since, as Badger has pointed out, Grove is really a one-inning guy at this point, maybe it would make sense to keep Knack here as a multi-inning guy, or at least to fill some role in the bullpen rather than being kicked to the curb after more or less doing everything they asked of him here.
Baseball America previews the ACL ($$$$). Two Dodgers (both out of the DSL) merit a mention:
https://www.baseballamerica.com/stories/10-players-to-watch-in-the-2024-arizona-complex-league/
Jesus Tillero, RHP, Dodgers
… He mixed a four-seamer, cutter, slurve and changeup into a repertoire that helped him allow just 19 hits in 30.2 innings …
Eduardo Quintero, OF, Dodgers
… He’s a plus runner with budding power, oodles of athleticism and a very high ceiling, especially if he sticks in center field as he matures. With a strong turn in the ACL, he has a chance to move quickly through the system’s ranks.
Also Samuel Munoz, who was at extended Spring Training at the tender age of 19 is being promoted to Rancho Cucamonga
The Lakers fired their Coach, Ham. The only take I have on that is my dislike of Reeves deferring to James and Davis. By that I mean, it seemed to me that Reeves too many times almost immediately passed the ball to those two and then ran to a corner and stood there.
Reeves is a great playmaker and when he is allowed to be a playmaker instead of a corner stander, he makes good things happen. If that was Ham’s plan, then I am glad he is gone.
I would like for James to get a chance to play with Curry at Golden State and be replaced with a consistently good shooter. They could also use a Sumo Wrestler to push Jokic away from the basket.
The Mariners took 2 of 3 from the Braves this week. Both close, low scoring games. The M’s have a nice pitching staff and had success challenging the Brave hitters with hard stuff, especially up. But they didn’t nibble around with breaking balls.
Let’s see if our advanced scouts saw the same thing for our staff?
Padres just traded for Arraez.
Marlins get reliever Woo-suk Go plus SD prospects 6, 9, 13 on the MLB Pipeline Top 30 Padres Prospect List.
Good Padres trade.
Dodgers Director of Pitching has one word for Bruns start tonight: