They went 2-8 on their latest road trip. They lost three straight game to the Cubs in Chicago, losing both games of a doubleheader to start the sweep.
They are 18-17, tied for second place in the National League West standings and 2.5 games behind the first-place San Francisco Giants.
The Dodgers showed signs of life on Saturday night against the Los Angeles Angels, winning 14-11 and building a 13-0 lead at one point.
It was the lone bright spot during one of the roughest stretches in recent memory for the Dodgers. To be honest, it was more of a candle than a bonfire.
Clayton Kershaw had one of his best starts of the season tossing five shutout innings on three-days rest and striking out five. It came after one of the worst starts of his career, when he pitched only one inning in a 7-1 loss to the Cubs in the first game of a doubleheader on Tuesday. He gave up four runs on four hits and two walks.
Embarrassing.
As humiliating as that loss to the Cubs was, it wasn't nearly as bad as the 14-11 win over the Angels.
Yes, scoring 14 runs and winning a baseball game can be shrouded in shame.
The Angels crawled back in the game, scoring seven runs in the seventh inning to cut the lead to three runs after taking Mike Trout and Justin Upton out of the game.
The Dodgers’ comfortable 13-0 lead turned into a save situation in four innings. When Kenley Jansen factors into the Dodgers fate, anything is possible.
Thankfully, Jansen didn’t factor into the game. Blake Treinen recorded the final three outs and earned his first save of the season.
Still, it was too close for comfort for a baseball team that had a two-touchdown lead.
Who’s to blame?
Some want to blame manager Dave Roberts. This is the same manager who’s won eight National League West titles in a row. He took the Dodgers to three straight World Series and won the last World Series. Roberts can only play the players he has. He is not the problem.
The offense is struggling. Mookie Betts and Corey Seager are the slumpiest of the slumping Dodgers. Cody Bellinger is still recovering from a broken leg. The clutch factor is not even in the Dodgers equation. Despite losing eight of their past 10 games, the Dodgers are averaging 4.9 runs per game over that stretch. Granted they scored 16 runs in one game and 14 in another, but still, the Dodgers can score runs when they want to. They can also score one run in a game when they want to. They did that four times in the past 10 games.
The bullpen sucks. If anyone deserves blame for the Dodgers slump, it’s the bullpen. The only reliable arms in the pen are the ones attached to Victor Gonzalez, Treinen and Jansen. The Dodgers keep asking minor league relievers to hold major league leads. Clearly Garrett Cleavinger, Mitch White and Dennis Santana are not up to the task.
Dodgers starting pitching power rankings:
- Clayton Kershaw
- Walker Buehler
- Trevor Bauer
- Julio Urias
The Dodgers start a two-game series against the Seattle Mariners at Chavez Ravine on Tuesday. They have a three-game weekend series against the Miami Marlins starting on Friday.
The season isn’t 40 games old and you “see it slipping away “?! Absolute nonsense.
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