Video Credit: MLB

FSM Essential Recap: Dodgers vs Angels – Series 36

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Los Angeles Dodgers (67-45)  |  Anaheim Angels (56-56)

 

“The only Angels in Los Angeles are in Heaven, and they’re looking down on the Dodgers.”

– Tommy LaSorda

 

 

Game 3:

 

Dodgers vs Angels
Photo Credit: Alex Gallardo/AP

The Dodgers took care of business on Sunday, as expected with the best pitcher starting against a middling team. But two plays stood out in the 8-2 win over the Angels at Dodger Stadium.

Trea Turner’s speed was on display in Saturday’s win, but on Sunday he made Dodger Stadium collectively gasp.

After a one-out walk, he scored from first on a single. Yes, you heard that correctly.

Sure, Turner was running on the pitch, and AJ Pollock’s grounder was deflected by second baseman David Fletcher into left field. But Turner just kept on running, using a gear that only a select few players have.

Turner scoring from first base on a single is one way to describe what happened. A boring way. Joe Davis more accurately described the action on SportsNet LA: “Trea Turner, a bolt of lightning!”

Trea wasn’t the Turner who stole a base on Sunday. That was Justin Turner in the first inning. But shortly after a second-inning defensive gem at third base, Justin Turner left the game with left groin discomfort.

 

Dodgers vs Angels
Photo Credit: Alex Gallardo/AP

That brought up Albert Pujols to pinch-hit in the bottom of the second, facing pitcher Reid Detmers, who was born eight months before Pujols’ major league debut. Pujols got the better of this matchup, crushing a ball more than halfway up the left-field pavilion.

Seeing Pujols hit home runs isn’t surprising, especially this year against a left-hander. After all, he’s the active leader in homers and fourth on the all-time list. But it was the sound of this one that could have awakened a hibernating bear.

Of the 676 home runs Pujols has in his career, this was just the ninth on a 3-0 count.

It was Pujols’ third career pinch-hit home run, and his first since September 5, 2009, off the Pirates’ Matt Capps.

Nearing the end of a stretch of three off days in an eight-day span, the Dodgers had only 12 pitchers on the active roster all weekend against the Angels, two fewer than the most common allocation this season. Eight of those pitchers are relievers, and with Kenley Jansen, Phil Bickford, and Alex Vesia all pitching in each of the first two games of the series, availabilities in the bullpen were limited on Sunday.

Enter Dodgers’ ace Walker Buehler, whose 147⅔ innings pitched rank second in the majors, trailing only Zack Wheeler. That total includes six innings from Buehler on Sunday, allowing only a run on four hits, striking out eight.

It’s the 22nd time in 23 starts Buehler has pitched at least six innings this season, and he lowered his ERA to 2.13.

 

Game 3 Boxscore:

 

WP: Walker Buehler (12-2)

LP: Reid Detmers (0-2)

HR: Albert Pujols (14), Cody Bellinger (7)

 

Monday is a travel day for the Dodgers, who fly to Philadelphia to face the red-hot Phillies, winners of eight straight games. Max Scherzer makes his second start with his new team in Tuesday’s opener with Aaron Nola starting for the home team. The first pitch is scheduled for 4:05 and can be seen on SportsNet LA.

 

 

 

Game 2:

 

Dodgers vs Angels
Photo Credit: Alex Gallardo/AP

The Franchise was in the building on Saturday as FSM President and co-founder TQ sang the National Anthem before the start of the Dodgers vs Angels game. 58,808 was in attendance at Dodger Stadium and they rose to their after TQ’s rendition of the Star-Spangled Banner.

In a game that was looking eerily familiar to Friday night’s loss, the Dodgers flipped the script, taking care of things before extra innings this time. Chris Taylor’s two-run double in the eighth gave the Dodgers a 5-3 win over the Angels on Saturday night at Dodger Stadium.

Just like the series, the Dodgers saw a 2-0 lead evaporate, but by the eighth inning, the game was tied at 3-3, setting the stage for the winning rally. Corey Seager singled to open the frame and Will Smith followed one out later with one of his own. Taylor then drove a pitch from Junior Guerra into the gap in left-center, scoring a pair.

That made a winner out of Brusdar Graterol, whose scoreless eighth inning was punctuated by a thrilling strikeout of all-world Shohei Ohtani to thwart a rally.

Kenley Jansen, pitching on his second night in a row, closed out the win with an easy ninth inning, part of four excellent innings from the bullpen.

Trea Turner made his first start as a Dodger on Saturday and showed off his array of skills right away.

“To be able to utilize his speed at the top, and create havoc on the bases, and stress, I feel good about that,” manager Dave Roberts said.

Havoc was wreaked in the first inning, when Turner walked, then flew around the bases to score easily on a double by Max Muncy, the new Dodgers acquisition staking his claim as the fastest player on the team. Turner ran 30 feet per second to score on the play, which is the fastest of any Dodger this season.

 

Dodgers vs Angels
Photo Credit: Trisha LaCoste/Franchise Sports Media

In the fifth, Turner singled and stole second so incredibly easy it almost felt like he was running against the Dodgers. On offense, Los Angeles picks their spots to swipe a bag, stealing bases at an 82-percent clip, well above the 75-percent league-wide success rate. But before Saturday, the Dodgers stole only 36 bases on the season, tied for 24th in the majors.

Turner has 22 stolen bases all by himself, good for fourth in the majors. He brings another dimension to the team. Among other things.

“The speed started out early in my life and career. I never wanted to just be a speed guy, bunt and do that sort of thing,” Turner said. “I always wanted to be a dangerous hitter, and that means you’ve got to hit for power and you’ve got to be consistent at the plate.”

Turner’s also been one of the best shortstops in baseball the last few years, and on Saturday in his first game at second base since Game 5 of the 2016 NLDS, he adjusted rather quickly on the defensive end. This play robbed José Iglesias to end the seventh.

“He looks like he’s doing fine,” said Taylor, no stranger to switching positions himself. “I believe if you can play shortstop, you can play anywhere.”

 

Dodgers vs Angels
Photo Credit: Trisha LaCoste/Franchise Sports Media

After two doubles and a smash single off Julio Urías tied the game in the third inning, Jo Adell lofted a high fly ball just in front of the mound that should have been the final out of the inning. Max Muncy eventually claimed it, but the ball clanged off his glove, allowing Phil Gosselin to trot home with the go-ahead run.

The third inning saw the only runs scored against Urías all night. He labored to get through his five innings, throwing 95 pitches. None of the five innings were clean, as he allowed nine runners to reach base. Saturday marked just the third time in 23 starts this season Urías has walked three or more batters.

In the bottom of the fourth, after a fly ball double by Chris Taylor down the right-field line that bounced — with Adell — over the wall in foul territory, the Dodgers had runners on second and third with one out for Cody Bellinger, with the pitcher Urías due up next. A prime RBI opportunity, only to be denied when Bellinger popped out into Gosselin in foul territory. Urías then grounded out to end the inning, keeping the Dodgers behind.

Bellinger was booed by a reasonable portion of the 50,000-plus on hand at Dodger Stadium for the popout, after which he was hitting .169/.267/.290 on the season. But in the seventh, he won them back by crushing a slider from Angels starter Jaime Barria deep into the visitors bullpen in right-field, tying the score.

 

Game 3 Boxscore:

 

WP: Brusdar Graterol (2-0)

LP: Junior Guerra (2-2)

SV: Kenley Jansen (23)

HR: Cody Bellinger (6)

 

In the series finale on Sunday, the Dodgers will start Walker Buehler against the Angels Reid Detmers. The first pitch is at 1:10 and can be seen on SportsNet LA and MLB Network in out of town markets.

 

 

Game 1:

 

Dodgers vs Angels
Photo Credit: Marcio Jose Sanchez/AP

Mookie Betts left Friday’s game with right hip discomfort, after providing the bulk of the Dodgers offense in a series-opening 4-3, 10-inning loss to the Angels at Dodger Stadium.

That’s 11 straight losses in extra innings for the Dodgers, who fall to 1-12 in such games this season. But the bigger loss might have come earlier.

Betts was running the bases gingerly in the first inning after a single. He advanced to third on a double by Justin Turner, and scored on a groundout by Albert Pujols, then limped on his way back to the dugout.

“Mookie is in some pain. He’s gimping back to the dugout,” Orel Hershiser observed on the SportsNet LA broadcast. “Mookie had to come from home to the dugout, Albert had to come all the way from behind first to the dugout, and they arrived at the same time. That’s the speed Mookie used to get back in the dugout.”

After some talk with trainer Yosuke Nakajima in the dugout, Betts remained in the game and even drove in the Dodgers’ second run with a two-out single in the fourth inning.

Betts played six innings in right field, his first time at the position since July 17. Betts spent time on the injured list with right hip inflammation, missing 11 consecutive games, and was limited to just one pinch-hit plate appearance in a 13-game span. After getting activated from the IL on Sunday, Betts played three games at second base before switching back to his customary outfield spot.

On Wednesday, Betts reiterated that his hip only bothers him while running. “It really doesn’t hurt me too much swinging,” he said.

Surrounding the hip injury, Betts has a hit in each of his last eight starts, including seven multi-hit games in that stretch, hitting an absurd .559/.610/1.206 (19 for 34) with 17 runs scored since July 10.

David Price pitched into the sixth inning for the second time this season, giving up only two runs, solo home runs from two of his last four batters faced to erase an early 2-0 lead. The equalizer was hit by pinch-hitter Jack Mayfield, an infielder that has been designated for assignment three times since February — by the Braves, Mariners, and Angels — but has seven home runs in 71 plate appearances in his second go-around this year with the Halos, including three homers in his last four games.

Price only allowed three other hits and no walks, but still got some help from catcher Austin Barnes in otherwise keeping the Angels off the board.

David Fletcher led off the fourth with a ground-rule double off someone’s head in the left-field pavilion, the first hit of the game against Price. But with one out, Fletcher wandered off the bag and appeared to try a delayed steal, only to be picked off at second by Barnes.

 

Dodgers vs Angels
Photo Credit: Marcio Jose Sanchez/AP

In the fifth inning, Juan Lagares singled with two outs, and inexplicably, with pitcher Patrick Sandoval batting, was thrown out trying to steal second by Barnes.

It was Iglesias and Mayfield who struck in the 10th for the Angels. Iglesias doubled off Garrett Cleavinger to score the free runner from second base, then Mayfield blooped a single off Max Muncy’s glove in short right field to score the second run.

The Dodgers have allowed at least one run in 14 consecutive extra innings, dating back to April 25.

The game got to extras thanks in part to Austin Warren, pitching in just his fourth major league game, recorded seven outs, and allowed only a single to get the game through nine for his first major league win.

Raisel Iglesias allowed two singles in the 10th and allowed one run to score on a sacrifice fly to the warning track by Corey Seager. But he got an AJ Pollock groundout to end it, leaving the tying and winning runs on base.

Cleavinger took the loss, his fourth in extra innings this season.

 

Game 1 Boxscore:

 

WP: Austin Warren (1-0)

LP: Garrett Cleavinger (2-4)

SV: Raisel Iglesias (24)

HR: José Iglesias (8), Jack Mayfield (7)

 

Julio Urías starts the middle game of the series against the Angels Jaime Barria. The first pitch is slated for 6:10 with the game on SportsNet LA. Franchise Sports Media’s President and Co-Founder TQ will be singing the National Anthem prior to the start of the game.

 

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– Joe Arrigo

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