On a day with exasperating pitching, excessive wildness, and an nearly comical aversion to cashing in on run alternatives, the Dodgers dropped their third recreation in a row, 6-4 to the Mets in what is likely to be essentially the most irritating loss in a rising . string of them.
On offense, the Dodgers might capitalize, on the mound they couldn't get clear innings, and each time they regarded to get again into the sport, the Mets responded. That's the way it's been going currently for the Dodgers, who’ve misplaced seven of their final 9. Not solely is it the Dodgers' first three-game dropping streak in 2024, however they haven't led in any of these video games, not since Tuesday.
One vivid spot was Freddie Freeman, who entered Saturday on a 5-for-37 skid and talked at size about how his swing was out of kinds. “All I can actually do is hit an off-speed down the appropriate area line or fall pitches off,” Freeman stated Friday evening. “or swing and miss.”
On Saturday, Freeman turned two 95 mph fastballs for RBI singles to middle area, driving within the run within the first inning, then hit two extra within the sixth to tug the Dodgers inside one.
Freeman additionally walked twice. He, Mookie Betts, and Shohei Ohtani all reached base 4 instances every, however the Dodgers solely managed to attain 4 runs on the day.
As a staff that they had one hit (Freeman's sixth inning) in eight at-bats with the bases loaded on Saturday, with six strikeouts (from Teoscar Hernández twice, James Outman, Andy Pages, Ohtani and Max Muncy). Muncy received the one non-strikeout out with the bases loaded on a tough pitch within the sixth inning, however as an alternative of driving residence a minimum of the tying run, Muncy was robbed. a great game by first baseman Pete Alonso.
The Dodgers are a surprising 3-for-23 (.130) with no extra-base hits and 12 strikeouts with the bases loaded.
“Half the battle is giving your self an opportunity, so we're going to get this,” Muncy stated. “We haven't realized the opposite facet. We simply should preserve going on the market, grinding at bats, sticking to our strategy, and we all know that ultimately we're going to begin getting these hits.”
A primary slog
Saying that starters Gavin Stone and Jose Buttó have been locked in a low-scoring duel earlier is technically true, however don't be swayed into considering both pitched significantly properly. Every pitcher walked 5 on Saturday, the primary pair to take action in the identical recreation at Dodger Stadium since Brandon McCarthy and David Value locked horns in a Dodgers-Crimson Sox tilt on Aug. 7, 2016.
Buttó's walks all got here within the first two innings, hitting Betts, Ohtani and Freeman consecutively with two outs within the second. Freeman singled residence a run within the opening body, however the Dodgers in any other case missed two big scoring alternatives. They loaded the bases within the first and second innings, however strikeouts neutralized each threats.
After these three straight walks, Buttó retired his seven consecutive hits and made it six on the day. However a double by Ohtani and hitting Hernández with a pitch ended Buttó's day with one out within the fifth. Muncy hit a sacrifice fly off Michael Tonkin so as to add a second run to Buttó's ledger.
Stone suffered the identical destiny, only one inning earlier. The proper-hander struck out simply certainly one of his 18 batters he confronted, and after 72 pitches by way of only one out within the fourth inning, he wasn't allowed to face the Mets' lineup a 3rd time. Stone went right into a 1-1 recreation with Joey Wendle at third base. Reliever Michael Grove hit his first residence run, then Marte singled residence the second run in opposition to Stone.
“Neither staff actually confirmed they wished to benefit from these alternatives, and we simply didn't capitalize,” supervisor Dave Roberts stated.
Pen is just not extra highly effective
Solely two Dodgers pitchers retired so as in an inning Saturday — Ryan Yarbrough within the fifth, and righty Nick Ramirez within the ninth. This wasn't an enormous outing for Yarbrough, particularly after he issued a stroll and hit a batter in his first three batters confronted within the sixth.
That led to a struggling Ryan Brasier, pitching for his second straight day, and promptly gave up a three-run residence run to Starling Marte to interrupt the tie. Brasier has the identical variety of residence runs in 9⅔ innings this season (three) as he did all of final season in 59⅔ innings between Boston and the Dodgers.
“It's execution,” Roberts stated of Brasier. “The slider isn't simply on the appropriate facet of the plate, and when it isn't it's coming laborious.”
Even Evan Phillips gave up a run, pitching for the primary time in every week. And the assertion was not earned within the eighth inning after a throwing error at shortstop by Betts.
Saturday particular
Dwelling run: Starling Mars (4)
WP – Michael Tonkin (1-2): 1+ IP, 1 hit, 2 strikeouts
LP – Ryan Yarbrough (2-1): 1⅓ IP, 2 runs, 1 stroll
Sv – Reed Garrett (1): 1 IP, 3 strikeouts
Subsequent
The Dodgers end at residence on Sunday afternoon (1:10 p.m.; SportsNet LA, MLB Community), with Tyler Glasnow pitching on 5 days of relaxation because the rotation will get combined up a bit with days off. That brings James Paxton to the Nationals subsequent week.
Proper-hander Adrian Houser begins Sunday for the Mets.
