[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d-5Pf8wY32I]
No more introduction really needed …
— Jon Weisman
Category: Pitching (Page 9 of 16)
By Jon Weisman
In dropping their final two games at Pittsburgh while the Giants were scoring in the 14th inning Tuesday and the ninth inning Wednesday to defeat the Phillies, the Dodgers have fallen two games behind in the National League West standings. That figure will be 1 1/2 or 2 1/2 games after San Francisco plays a final game today at Philadelphia (and against Cole Hamels) beginning at 10:05 a.m. Pacific.
For the time being, this is the farthest back the Dodgers have been since June 27. Since going 16-6 to gain 10 games on the Giants between June 8-30 and move into first place in the division, the Dodgers are 8-10 in July.
Nevertheless, the Dodgers’ pitching is lined up about as well you could imagine for their three-game series at San Francisco that begins Friday, with Zack Greinke, Clayton Kershaw and Hyun-Jin Ryu taking the mound and relievers Kenley Jansen and J.P. Howell off since Monday.
On top of everything else, the Giants will arrive in San Francisco well after the Dodgers have gotten there.
Greinke is scheduled to face Tim Lincecum, who picked up his first career save Tuesday and has been on a roll since throwing his second career no-hitter June 25. Lincecum has an ERA of 0.95 in his past 38 innings with 31 strikeouts against 28 baserunners. The batting average on balls in play against Lincecum during that time, however, is .140.
Saturday figures to pit Kershaw against Ryan Voglesong, who has a 3.99 ERA after allowing 11 hits to the 22 batters he faced in an abbreviated start Monday at Philadelphia — a game the Giants ended up winning, 7-4.
Sunday’s scheduled pitchers are Ryu and Yusmeiro Petit, who has mostly pitched in relief and would be making his seventh start of the season. Petit has a 6.32 ERA as a starter this season after allowing five runs in five innings at the top of Tuesday’s 14-inning game, his first start since May 31. Petit was replacing Matt Cain, who went on the disabled list Monday.
Madison Bumgarner and Tim Hudson, the Giants’ two best starting pitchers this season, will have pitched Wednesday and today and therefore should miss the Dodgers. Mark Saxon of ESPN Los Angeles has a nice preview of the upcoming series.
Seven of first 11 batters against Dan Haren reached base. None of last 11 batters reached base. Baseball.
— Dodger Insider (@DodgerInsider) July 24, 2014
By Jon Weisman
The Dodgers play only three games over the next 130 hours, and you can make the argument that all that off time couldn’t come at a better time.
With two off days over the next five, Josh Beckett will have six days between starts and Dan Haren will likely be off for at least the rest of the month, if not in a swingman role like Paul Maholm. The earliest the Dodgers absolutely need a fifth starter is August 2, nine days from now and two days after the non-waiver trade dealine.
Haren’s status and whether he might be replaced as the Dodgers’ fifth starter by a trade is drawing major speculation. Since May 1, the 33-year-old righty has a 5.32 ERA and opponents’ OPS of .831, and is allowing a home run every 4.8 innings. And since throwing seven shutout innings of one-hit ball on the last day of June, Haren has lasted 19 innings in four July starts with a 9.47 ERA and opponents’ OPS of 1.012, which is like facing a lineup of nine Mike Trouts.
Here’s what Haren himself told Ken Gurnick of MLB.com:
“I know we talked a while back about off days,” said Haren. “I’ll do anything for the team and if it means I get skipped, I totally understand. I’m not going to march into the office. I’ve got to earn their respect to go back out there.
“It’s really gotten away from me the last four times out. I was having a great year, I felt great throwing the ball, then a few starts ago it kind of snowballed and everything that could go wrong has gone wrong.”
It has to be vexing for Haren that, after allowing four runs in the first inning and a second-inning home run to Travis Snider, he was then able to set down the final 11 batters he faced on four groundouts, six strikeouts and one soft fly out. Though that might seem encouraging, the postgame comments from Haren and Don Mattingly did not reflect that sentiment.
[mlbvideo id=”34680617″ width=”550″ height=”308″ /]
By Jon Weisman
Intentional? No. Irresponsible? That’s another story.
That was the sentiment from the Dodgers after Sunday’s roller-coaster 4-3 victory.
Adrian Gonzalez, who had the game-winning hit Sunday for the Dodgers, starting pitcher Clayton Kershaw and manager Don Mattingly talked about the key events.
[mlbvideo id=”31198271″ width=”550″ height=”308″ /]
Dodgers at Cardinals, 5:15 p.m.
Dee Gordon, 2B
Yasiel Puig, RF
Hanley Ramirez, SS
Adrian Gonzalez, 1B
Matt Kemp, LF
Andre Ethier, CF
Juan Uribe, 3B
A.J. Ellis, C
Dan Haren, P
Dee Gordon, 2B
Yasiel Puig, RF
Hanley Ramirez, SS
Adrian Gonzalez, 1B
Matt Kemp, LF
Andre Ethier, CF
Juan Uribe, 3B
A.J. Ellis, C
Dan Haren, P
By Jon Weisman
One big concern with Paco Rodriguez in 2013 was whether he was burned out by the time September arrived. That was the conclusion almost everyone seemed to draw when his otherwise sterling season fell apart with a 5.68 ERA and 2.211 WHIP in the regular season’s final month, followed by a rough and abbreviated postseason.
Cause or correlation, it made me curious how much more rested Rodriguez will be after this year’s All-Star Break compared to last year. (Note: MLB and minor-league work is combined here.)
[mlbvideo id=”34563379″ width=”550″ height=”308″ /]
By Jon Weisman
Hyun-Jin Ryu struck out a season-high 10 in six innings today in the Dodgers’ 1-0 victory over San Diego at Dodger Stadium, an appropriate way for the Dodgers to finish a first half filled with strikeouts by their starting pitchers.
From Bruce Schoenfeld’s New York Times Magazine piece, “The Mystery of the Vanishing Screwball”:
The apotheosis of the screwball in modern baseball history took place on Oct. 19, 1981, when Valenzuela, then a 20-year-old rookie, faced the Expos in the deciding game of the National League Championship Series. “I’m going to throw mostly screwballs tomorrow,” Valenzuela told the coach Manny Mota over dinner. “Just watch.”
Though no records exist to confirm it, Valenzuela probably threw more screwballs that day than most ballparks have seen in the past decade. He allowed three hits over eight and two-thirds innings, beat the Expos, 2-1, and lifted the Dodgers to the World Series, which they won over the Yankees. “It was working, so I threw it over and over,” he told me. “It was one of my best games.”
In other words, it wasn’t until near the end of that magical 1981 season that Valenzuela reached peak screwball.
— Jon Weisman
By Jon Weisman
Clayton Kershaw has a 36-inning scoreless streak, has allowed seven runs in seven weeks and will take over the MLB lead in ERA if he throws seven shutout innings against the worst offense of the past 30 to 50 years.
But he won’t have the lowest ERA on the mound when play at Dodger Stadium begins tonight.
Dodgers at Tigers, 10:08 a.m.
Dee Gordon, 2B
Yasiel Puig, RF
Hanley Ramirez, DH
Adrian Gonzalez, 1B
Matt Kemp, LF
Andre Ethier, CF
Juan Uribe, 3B
A.J. Ellis, C
Miguel Rojas, SS
(Zack Greinke, P)
Dee Gordon, 2B
Yasiel Puig, RF
Hanley Ramirez, DH
Adrian Gonzalez, 1B
Matt Kemp, LF
Andre Ethier, CF
Juan Uribe, 3B
A.J. Ellis, C
Miguel Rojas, SS
(Zack Greinke, P)
By Jon Weisman
Dodger ace Clayton Kershaw is scheduled to pitch his last game before the All-Star Break on Thursday. But Kershaw might not start the Dodgers’ first game after the All-Star Break on July 18, eight days later.
Don Mattingly told reporters in Detroit today that if Kershaw pitches two innings in Tuesday’s All-Star Game, that he would not open the Dodgers’ post-break schedule in St. Louis.
Whether that will happen remains to be seen.
[mlbvideo id=”34304699″ width=”550″ height=”308″ /]
By Jon Weisman
What’s the best part of Clayton Kershaw’s 36-inning scoreless streak, now the third-longest in Dodger history after his latest magical act, taming Coors Field in a 9-0 Dodger victory?
- That he’s struck out 35 percent of the batters he has faced?
- That opponents have an OPS against him – not batting average, but OPS – of .292?
- That 18 of the 36 innings have been perfect innings?
- That while opponents are batting .124 against him, Kershaw has hit .273 against his opponents?
For me, I think it’s this:
By Jon Weisman
It’s July 4, so let’s take a look at the only active Major Leaguer to wear the patriotic number 74* – Curacao’s own Kenley Jansen. (We’ll pretend we don’t know that Jansen chose that number to match his house number in his homeland.)
Spoiler alert: What looks like the Dodger righty’s worst season might actually be his best.
Stephen Dunn/Getty Images
By Jon Weisman
Gonna get the positive out of the way first, if you don’t mind.
Does Hyun-Jin Ryu get enough appreciation? He is just so solid and, it appears, almost completely unflappable.
After a first-inning double and a Carlos Triunfel error that put runners at the corners today, Ryu struck out Cleveland’s No. 4 and No. 5 hitters.
After a fourth-inning home run by Ryan Raburn gave the Indians a 2-0 lead that some fans no doubt thought was insurmountable, Ryu stranded runners in the fourth, fifth and sixth innings.
Ryu doesn’t always threaten to throw a perfect game the way he did on Memorial Day, but let’s talk consistency and minimizing damage. Since April 27, Ryu’s ERA has not gone below 3.00 or above 3.33.
Thanks largely to Ryu, the Dodgers were able to stay in today’s game long enough for a three-run rally in the bottom of the fifth to take the lead — a rally that was keyed by Ryu’s RBI double, the fourth straight hit by Dodger pitchers in the past 24 hours. Andre Ethier then had a clutch, 2-2 count, two-out, two-run single, Ethier’s third big hit in the past four games.
The Dodgers took that 3-2 lead into the eighth inning, after Ryu called it a day, having allowed seven hits and no walks in seven innings while striking out eight. Ryu helped the Dodgers tie the modern Major League mark of 36 consecutive games with two or fewer walks by their starting pitchers.
* * *
Unfortunately for Ryu and the Dodgers, Brian Wilson’s extended run of recently effective relief hit a speed bump — with the Indians tying the game in the eighth on two walks and a pinch-hit RBI single by David Murphy, then taking the lead on a two-run single by Mike Aviles — and the Dodgers lost their second straight game for the first time in three weeks, 5-4.
Wilson had been unscored upon in 18 of his past 19 apperances, with 13 hits and seven walks in 16 2/3 innings against 18 strikeouts and two inherited runners stranded. But he got in trouble with an early season bugaboo — walking the first two batters he faced.
[mlbvideo id=”34236477″ width=”400″ height=”224″ /]
Similarly, while Miguel Rojas had a dazzling spear of a line drive at third base (above) and right fielder Scott Van Slyke threw out a runner at home, this was more of an April game defensively for the Dodgers than what they’ve been producing lately. In addition to the aforementioned errors, Triunfel had a dropped throw on a stolen-base attempt and didn’t turn to catch a throw by Matt Kemp to third base in that troublesome top of the eighth (a throw that Kemp said afterward was his responsibility).
And still, the Dodgers nearly did pull this one out.
In the bottom of the eighth, Scott Van Slyke hit his seventh homer of the year — his first against a right-handed pitcher — to pull the Dodgers within a run. And then in the ninth, after pinch-hitter Hanley Ramirez walked with two out, Ethier worked the count from 0-2 to 3-2 before slicing another big hit, a double to left, sending Ramirez to third. (Note: The Dodgers were out of pinch-runners at this point, except for pitchers.)
Needing a single to tie or perhaps win the game, Kemp hit the ball hard, but it was flagged down on the warning track in right-center, and that was that.
“Obviously, you don’t want to not win,” Dodger manager Don Mattingly said, “but I’m not frustrated with our effort at all, and our energy.”
Indians at Dodgers, 7:10 p.m.
Dee Gordon, 2B
Yasiel Puig, RF
Adrian Gonzalez, 1B
Matt Kemp, LF
Andre Ethier, CF
Juan Uribe, 3B
Drew Butera, C
Carlos Triunfel, SS
Josh Beckett, P
Dee Gordon, 2B
Yasiel Puig, RF
Adrian Gonzalez, 1B
Matt Kemp, LF
Andre Ethier, CF
Juan Uribe, 3B
Drew Butera, C
Carlos Triunfel, SS
Josh Beckett, P
By Jon Weisman
While tonight’s start by Josh Beckett was never really in doubt, the Dodgers have taken measures to have a Plan B in case he needs to skip a start going forward.
Recently, the Dodgers adjusted the schedule of Albuquerque starting pitcher Red Patterson, who allowed one run in 4 2/3 innings of a spot start against the Mets in May, to make sure it lined up with that of Beckett, who is scheduled for two more starts after tonight before the All-Star Break.
Beckett has no specific ailments right now, but as happens with an everyday player (most infamously, I suppose, Mike Marshall), “general soreness” can catch up with you.
“Josh is always the guy that in between starts we worry about,” Dodger manager Don Mattingly said Monday. “He just kind of battles every time to get ready for the next one.”
Beckett has frequently described the way he feels after a start as “like being hit by a truck.”
Said Mattingly: “He’s got over 2,000 innings on him. There’s time he doesn’t throw his bullpens. Any guy who’s got a little mileage on him, we’ve got to pay attention.”
Mattingly said that frankly, he hasn’t noticed an effect on Beckett’s performance when he skips a bullpen session. After missing most of last season with thoracic outlet syndrome, Beckett has a no-hitter and 2.11 ERA for the Dodgers in 2014, as well as 14 consecutive scoreless innings (the Dodgers as a team have 24).
“Josh is a guy in the past who threw a lot of pitches in the bullpen, even before a game,” Mattingly said. “I think it just kind of came to the point where he’s cutting back and trusting his stuff, being more thrifty with the number of pitches he’s throwing in all areas.”
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gj42yyIBpXE]
Hard not to love these moments of Clayton Kershaw and Kenley Jansen impersonating each other. Video via Dodgerfilms, aka Bobby Crosby, who was profiled in the May issue of Dodger Insider magazine.
— Jon Weisman
By Jon Weisman
Clayton Kershaw has been many things so far in his young career, but a no-hit pitcher isn’t one of them.
In fact, given his dazzling stuff, it’s remarkable how rarely he has threatened to throw a no-no, and how rapidly he usually loses them.
In 192 career starts, including the postseason, Kershaw has taken a no-hitter past the sixth inning only once. Nolan Ryan finished nine innings without allowing a hit more times than Kershaw has finished five innings.
The breakdown to date of when Kershaw has lost his no-hit bids:
- First inning: 102 times
- Second inning: 45 times
- Third inning: 23 times
- Fourth inning: 17 times
- Fifth inning: three times
- Sixth inning: once
- Seventh inning: none
- Eighth inning: once
What follows is a brief history of Kershaw’s hitful wonders …
