“You did good man.”
“No, YOU did good.” pic.twitter.com/d31vVvITgu— Los Angeles Dodgers (@Dodgers) April 26, 2016
By Jon Weisman
Yasiel Puig and Trayce Thompson homered in the fourth inning for the Dodgers, but it was not enough to withstand single runs by the Marlins in the three middle innings, and the Dodgers fell to Miami on Monday in their series opener, 3-2.
The Dodger bullpen pitched 3 2/3 shutout innings, but the difference-maker was Derek Dietrich’s RBI triple in the sixth inning off Ross Stripling, who lost his first MLB decision. Stripling allowed eight hits and three walks in 5 1/3 innings, and his ERA is now 3.22.
After three shutout innings, Stripling got the Giancarlo Stanton christening with a fourth-inning homer, and the powerful Marlins right fielder also had an RBI double in the fifth, a couple of pitches after he hit a foul popup that Yasmani Grandal, who otherwise played a solid first base, couldn’t catch.
The Dodgers gambled they could more outs from Stripling after he threw 95 pitches in his first five innings, because (as Dave Roberts would later tell reporters) relievers Kenley Jansen, Chris Hatcher and Pedro Baez were unavailable after heavy usage in Colorado, and given that Stripling’s arm has had more work since his memorable big-league debut at San Francisco four starts ago, but Stripling gave up the go-ahead run before he got his next (and last) out.
For Thompson, it was his first homer as a Dodger after hitting five in his MLB debut with the White Sox in 2015.
throwdeuce
Offense is to blame, but Roberts should not have had Stripling start the 6th at 95 pitches thrown. Tomorrow Kershaw goes, so that’s when you hope the pen gets some rest. Plus Lee hasn’t pitched yet.
oldbrooklynfan
I think games not pitched by Kershaw and Maeda are the toughest to win, no matter who we’re playing against.