The Dodgers swept the visiting Colorado Rockies in a four-game weekend series and have put together an eight-game winning streak.
The Dodgers went 6-0 against the Rockies and Arizona Diamondbacks last week, have won 12 of their past 13 games and are 20-9 since the All Star break.
And for those keeping score at home, the Dodgers are 32-17 since Pride Night on June 16.
It all adds up to an 8.5-game lead in the National League West standings over those surprising San Francisco Giants.
It’s been a successful stretch since the trade deadline too, with new additions making valuable contributions. The most valuable might be Amed Rosario. He hit a solo home run in Saturday’s 4-1 win over the Rockies.
In addition to sweeping the lowly Rockies, the Dodgers celebrated Fernando Valenzuela over the weekend. His No. 34 was retired on Friday night. Saturday night was his bobblehead night. Sunday was 1981 World Series ring day.
Valenzuela was on two World Series championship teams for the Dodgers. He was the ace of the staff in 1981, a strike-shortened season that ended with Valenzuela winning the Cy Young Award and Rookie of the Year. The Dodgers and New York Yankees met for the third time in five years in the World Series, with the Yankees winning the first two in 1977 and 1978. The Dodgers won the World Series in six games in 1981.
Valenzuela was also on the 1988 World Series championship team for the Dodgers, although he was not as effective in that season.
Another one of his noteworthy moments, and there were many, was when he threw a no-hitter against the St. Louis Cardinals in 1990. There were reminders of all Valenzula’s greatest moments as a Dodger at the stadium all weekend.
While the Dodgers were celebrating their past heroes, the current Dodgers were putting on a show.
Tony Gonsolin and Julio Urias made encouraging starts in the final two games of the series against the Rockies.
Gonsolin started Saturday’s game and made one bad pitch. It was his first pitch. Ezequiel Tovar hit a lead-off home run to give the Rockies a short-lived 1-0 lead.
Gonsolin settled down after that, allowing only two more hits in six innings and won his eighth game of the season.
Urias started on Sunday and matched a career high in strikeouts with 12. He improved to 10-6 in an 8-3 win over the Rockies, won his third game in a row and his fifth game in his past seven starts.
He has given up six runs and struck out 27 batters in his past 24 innings pitched.
It’s a good sign for the Dodgers if Gonsolin and Urias return to the form that made them all stars last season.
“If I’ve learned anything this year, it’s if you get hit in the face you just keep going,” Gonsolin told the Associated Press after Saturday’s game.
Dodgers starting pitcher power rankings:
- Julio Urias
- Tony Gonsolin
- Clayton Kershaw
- Lance Lynn
- Bobby Miller
The Dodgers (71-46) start a three-game series against the Milwaukee Brewers at Dodger Stadium on Tuesday. They have a weekend series with the Miami Marlins at home starting on Friday.
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