Jim Cella
LOS ANGELES—Los Angeles nearly erased a 4-run deficit in the final two innings but came up one run shorts and lost 5-4 to the Giants on Saturday afternoon. San Francisco scored single runs in the first three innings and tacked on two in the fourth to take a 5-1 lead before the Dodgers staged a late-game rally that fell just short. Los Angeles plated a pair of runs in the eighth inning to bring the game within striking distance at 5-3. Will Smith led off the ninth with a pinch-hit home run but that would be the end of the comeback trail as the Dodgers recorded three straight outs and lost for the first time this season. Los Angeles is now 2-1 on the year. It is the first time the team hasn’t been 3-0 to start the year since 2016.
GAME RECAP: The Dodgers outhit the Giants for the third straight game. Los Angeles had nine hits on the day as compared to seven for San Fran. It was the first time this season that the Dodgers have been held to a single-digit hit total. Justin Turner and Chris Taylor led the way with two hits each. Turner was 2-for-4 with a pair of doubles and a RBI while Taylor was 2-for-3. Starting pitcher Alex Wood lasted 3.0 innings and allowed three earned runs, three hits and three walks. Los Angeles then used five relievers to finish the game.
GAME HIGHLIGHTS:
STREAK STUFF: The Dodgers had their 6-game win streak against the Giants come to an end and also had a 9-game victory streak against NL West foes come crashing to a halt. The five runs scored by the Giants was the most this year. It marked only the fourth time in the past 22 games that San Francisco has scored more than four runs against the Dodgers.
BASES LOADED LAMENT: The two key moments of the game on offense came with two outs and the bases loaded. The first crucial situation came in the bottom of the second. Trailing 2-1, Los Angeles loaded the bases but then Mookie Betts flied out to center field and the Giants were able to keep the momentum in the game. That lasted until the Dodgers started a rally in the eight when they plated two runs on a Corey Seager 2-out single to right which scored Cody Bellinger and Turner. Taylor followed with a single before Joc Pederson was hit to set up the second key situation. Kiké Hernández then grounded out to second to end the comeback threat.
D-FENCE: The Dodgers posted their first error-free game of the year. After having a single defensive miscue in each of the first two games, Los Angeles was spotless in the field on Saturday. Last year the Dodgers were 21st in MLB in errors. They had 106 errors and a fielding percentage of .982. The Dodgers longest error-free streak last season was nine games which went from April 18-27.
RUNNING OUT OF INNINGS: The Dodgers were doubled up on line out/throw out situations on three occasions to end three straight innings. Turner was doubled off second after Seager lined out to second. In the fourth, Pederson was doubled up at first base after Hernández lined out to center field and then in the fifth, Austin Barnes was thrown out at first after Mookie Betts lined out to short. The Dodgers ran into a fourth double play on the base paths but it didn’t end an inning. Taylor was thrown out at third base after Pederson had a drop in for a single to right field to start the fourth.
HIT MEN: The Dodgers now have four players who have hit safely in every game they have played this season. Turner, Seager and Pederson all hits in three straight while Taylor has a base knock in the two games he has played.
FASTBALLS, WE DON’T NEED NO STINKIN’ FASTBALLS: Dodgers’ reliever Joe Kelly entered the game in the sixth inning and proceeded to throw 15 straight off-speed pitches. Kelly struck out Mauricio Dubon and Tyler Heineman but then walked Austin Slater on a 3-2 count. He threw his first fast ball of the frame to Donovan Solano, repeated the heat on the second pitch before Barnes threw out Slater who tried to steal second.
HELLO 2018, GOODBYE 2019: Blake Treinen saw his first action in Dodger blue in the seventh inning. His sinker returned to the 2018 form and he cruised past three straight Giants’ hitters. Treinen received Cy Young consideration in 2018 when he pitched for the Oakland A’s and compiled a 9-2 record with a remarkable 0.78 ERA. He faltered last year, with his season ERA ballooning to a 4.91 ERA. He wasn’t resigned and the Dodgers picked him up as a free agent on Dec. 15.
ON DECK: The teams will finish off the 4-game series on Sunday when they play another nationally televised game. ESPN will cover the series finale starting at 7:08 p.m. Julio Urias is scheduled to get his first start of the year for the Dodgers. Urias threw 5.0 innings and gave up only one run in his lone start in the summer camp against Arizona. Last year he posted a 2.49 ERA over eight starts and went 4-3. Urias is 0-2 in six starts in his career vs. the Giants. While his win/loss record isn’t cause for optimism, his ERA of 1.34 and 34 Ks in 33.2 innings pitched tells a different story. San Francisco stays true to its early-season, gamesmanship form and hasn’t released its starter.
IN THE HOLE: The Dodgers will have their first day off of the season and then travel to Houston to take on the Astros in a 2-game series. Walker Buehler and Dustin May are the probable starters for Los Angeles.
