Dodgers Win 10 Straight
Dodgers Win 10 Straight in Playoff Preview
By David A. Avila
LOS ANGELES-Come October these teams could be meeting in the playoffs.
But in the middle of August, the Los Angeles Dodger rolled over the Milwaukee Brewers for their 10th consecutive victory and second straight win over the NL Central Division leader.
The Dodger offense showed up like a swarm of wasps attacking an intruder to their hive on Tuesday and Wednesday. The biggest stings came from the one-two-three assassins Mookie Betts, Freddie Freeman and Will Smith of course.
Others joined in too.
In a battle of southpaws Clayton Kershaw hurled a solid five innings for the Dodgers with less than the usual sparkle against Brewer lefty Wade Miley. It was more than enough to keep the Dodger winning streak intact at 10 consecutive games.
Meanwhile, the San Francisco Giants were defeated by Tampa Bay and fell 10 games behind the Dodgers. At the All Star break a mere two games separated the teams.
It happens every summer. Once the days get hotter in July and August so do the Dodger bats. And with the recent additions of Kike Hernandez and Amed Rosario to the already potent L.A. attack, it’s difficult for opposing pitchers to catch a breath.
Take Wednesday evening, after Mookie Betts walked, Freddie Freeman flied to left and Betts tagged up at first and scrambled to second base before the throw from left field could beat him. The next batter Will Smith brought him home with single.
The first three batters in the lineup Betts, Freeman and Smith had nine of the Dodgers total 11 hits. The other two hits were homers by Miguel Rojas and Chris Taylor.
Meanwhile, Kershaw was trudging along not particularly dominant, but with the defense making spectacular plays behind him such as Betts running full speed to chase down a liner by Brewers star Christian Yelich. It was enough to keep the Brewers from mustering any type of rally.
“It wasn’t pretty tonight, but at the end of the day I’ll take it,” said Kershaw pointing out that great defensive plays kept him in the game.
Dodger skipper Dave Roberts continues to praise the chemistry on this particular team. It’s a hodgepodge lineup comprised of veterans and rookies that kept the team afloat until the summer heated up.
Now the Dodgers are humming along like a hemi engine.
“It’s a combo team effort, it starts with pitching,” said Roberts after the 7-1 victory over the Brewers on Wednesday. “We got a long way to go. We got depth. It keeps guys fresh.”
Depth in the Dodger rosters has always been a strength especially with the pitching.
This year pitching has been led by rookies coming to the rescue to shore up the injury losses of Dustin May, Walker Buehler, Blake Treinen, Jimmy Nelson, Shelby Miller, Daniel Hudson and now Joe Kelly. Any other team would be wrecked by those casualties.
But rookie pitchers like Bobby Miller, Gavin Stone and Emmet Sheehan kept the Dodgers from collapsing.
The return of Kershaw came at the perfect period of the long season and Dodger manager Roberts does not want to endanger the linchpin of the pitching staff.
“I felt it was the right moment,” said Roberts about removing Kershaw from the game after the fifth inning.
After Kershaw departed he was relieved by Brusdar Graterol, Ryan Brasier and Gus Varland who did not allow a run in their four combined innings.
If the standings remain as today, the Dodgers would be facing Milwaukee in the playoffs while Atlanta Braves would meet the Wild Card winners. It’s something to think about but as Roberts said, “we have a long way to go.”
AL Stuff
Los Angeles Angels have virtually collapsed since the trade deadline and finally managed to beat the Texas Rangers who lead the AL West. The Angels needed a near no-hit game performance to defeat the Rangers 2-0 on Wednesday.
Who knows why the Angels seem cursed with making good decisions that turn bad and the inability to produce a consistent lineup. All teams suffer injuries but the team from Anaheim can’t seem to keep its star players like Mike Trout, Anthony Rendon and spark plug rookie shortstop Zach Neto on the playing field.
In my 40 years of covering Major League Baseball I’ve never seen a more snake bit team.
The Angels are two games under .500 and seven games behind a Wild Card berth.
The New York Yankees are in the worst collapse since the mid-90s. Though super star Aaron Judge has returned from his injury the Bronx team needs more than his big bat. Suddenly the other hitters can’t seem to find their strokes. Are they suddenly getting old?
Another reason has been the loss of pitchers Nestor Cortes and Frankie Montas. Gerrit Cole cannot pitch every day.
(Photo by NBC Sports)