The Dodgers face the surprising San Francisco Giants in the most important series of the season this week.
Not only is this the last time the Dodgers play the Giants at Dodger Stadium in the regular season, it could determine who wins the National League West championship.
First of all, who was the genius who made the schedule? The Dodgers should play the Giants the last weekend of every season. This should be non-negotiable. The best rivalry in baseball deserves to be played at the pinnacle of the season, not in the middle of July.
Secondly, this series couldn’t have come at a worse time for the Dodgers.
The Giants have a one-game lead over the Dodgers in the standings. The four-game series, which starts Monday, could tip the advantage to either team when it ends on Thursday.
The Dodgers could have a three-game lead in the NL West when this series is over.
The Giants could have a five-game lead over the Dodgers when the series is over.
To make things worse, the Dodgers are definitely at a significant disadvantage in this series.
Not only is Trevor Bauer going through some things and is unavailable until at least July 27, if ever again for the Dodgers, Clayton Kershaw is on the injured list until the beginning of August at the earliest. Half the Dodgers rotation is out of commission in this crucial series.
Add that Corey Seager is still on the mend and it makes for a bad combination of circumstances for the Dodgers. Throw in that Mookie Betts is nursing a sore hip and Gavin Lux pulled a hamstring in Sunday’s game against the Colorado Rockies and the Dodgers are hurting for some hitters.
Tony Gonsolin, who has been inconsistent at best, starts against Kevin Gausman in Game 1 of the series against the Giants. Gausman has been one of the best pitchers in the National League with a 9-3 record and a 1.73 ERA. Gonsolin is making his seventh start of the season and is 1-0 with a 2.13 ERA. It’s not embarrassing, but far from impressive next to Gausman’s numbers. The Giants have the advantage in Game 1.
The Dodgers have yet to announce a starter for Game 2. That means it’s probably a bullpen game. So, hopefully Gonsolin can go more than five innings in Game 1 to give the Dodgers bullpen a decent chance in Game 2. The Giants are scheduled to start Alex Wood. Don’t the Dodgers wish they signed Wood when they had the chance? He is 8-3 with a 3.67 ERA and having one of the best seasons of his career. The Giants probably have the edge in Game 2.
Julio Urias is scheduled to start Game 3 of this series against Logan Webb. Urias has been fantastic. If not for Jacob deGrom of the New York Mets, Urias would probably be the favorite for the Cy Young Award. He leads the majors in wins, is 12-3 with a 3.78 ERA and, for whatever reason, the Dodgers give him tons of run support.
Webb is having a very pedestrian season, at 4-3 with a 3.54 ERA. He is the Gonsolin of the Giants rotation. The Dodgers should be in good shape for Game 3.
In Game 4, Walker Beuhler is set to start against Anthony DeSclafani. Buehler is having a Cy Young Award-caliber season, too. He is 10-1 with a 2.36 ERA and has 114 strikeouts in 114.1 innings.
DeSclafani is no slouch either, with a 10-3 record and 2.68 ERA. The final game of this series looks like a pitchers duel on the horizon. Runs will be at a premium. As long as this game doesn’t go into extra innings, the Dodgers should be fine.
Speaking of extra innings, the Dodgers exposed one of its biggest weaknesses in the series finale against the Rockies on Sunday. The Dodgers took two of three games against the Rockies over the weekend, but the Dodgers lost Sunday’s game, 6-5, on a walk-off, two-run home run by Charlie Blackmon in the 10th inning. That dropped the Dodgers to 1-9 in extra inning games. Ouch!
The Dodgers starting pitchers power rankings:
- Julio Urias
- Walker Buehler
- Tony Gonsolin
- David Price
The Dodgers (58-36) play the Rockies at Dodger Stadium in a three-game series that starts on Friday to close out the week. That should give the Dodgers a little breather before heading to Frisco for a three-game series against the Giants. The next two weeks could seal the fate of the Dodgers in their pursuit of a ninth NL West title in a row. It could also give Dodger fans a glimpse of how the Dodgers stack up against the Giants. It is going to be another long two weeks for the Dodgers.
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