Steve Webb
SAN FRANCISCO, CA — Not a lot good happened in the opening game of the Dodgers’ three-game set in Oracle Park. They got outhit and outslugged by the Giants and a costly error by Justin Bruihl opened the door to a big inning. But high atop the list of not-so-good things from Friday’s game was the performance of Walker Buehler. Though he gave up three runs, the biggest concern was the something that he felt “pop” in his pitching elbow in the third inning, forcing him to leave the game after just four innings. So, yeah, not a great night for Dodger fans.
Dodgers get on the board early, but lose the lead immediately
The Dodgers took an early lead in this one that was very short-lived indeed. In the top of the second inning, the Dodgers got to starter Jakob Junis for a quick run on a Justin Turner single and a Chris Taylor double. JT doesn’t have the speed of other guys named Turner on the ballclub, but he was able to chug around the bases and slide across home just before the throw from the outfield arrived.
However, Walker Buehler couldn’t provide that shutdown inning that is so important when you take the lead on the road. The Giants staged a rally of their own in the bottom of the second and got two runs on a single from Joc Pederson, a double down the left field line from Evan Longoria, and an RBI single from Brandon Crawford. Buehler was able to get out of the inning with no further damage, but the Dodgers were playing from behind again. Then, when Darren Ruf hit a solo shot in the fourth, the Giants were up 3-1
Lux homers to narrow the gap
However, there was a brief moment in this game where it looked like the Dodgers might stage a comeback. Gavin Lux led off the top of the fifth with a solo home run to narrow the Giants’ lead to 3-2. It was Lux’s first home run since the Minnesota series way back in April, and yet another sign that Gavin Lux’s production is on the upswing. For the month of June, Lux is hitting .429 with an OPS of 1.107. Jeff McNeil of the Mets is probably the leading candidate for second base on the NL All Star team, but you could certainly make the case that Lux deserves to be on the roster. By the way fan voting has begun for the ASG, so start stuffing those ballot boxes Dodger fans!
Buehler’s early exit
However, Lux’s homer would be the last time the Dodgers would cross home plate in this one. And to make matters worse, Walker Buehler did not emerge from the dugout to pitch the bottom of the fifth inning. We would learn after the game that it was indeed a medical decision to remove him. After the game, Buehler explained. “I’ve had Tommy John surgery, so I think [the level of concern] is a little bit heightened,” Buehler said. “It is what it is. That happens in this game. A lot of guys in this clubhouse have dealt with stuff with their elbows. It’s part of this game. I have all the faith in our medical staff and whatnot. But before we kind of dive into that, we need to know what we’re dealing with.”
He said he noticed something was bothering him after throwing a breaking ball in the third inning. He finished the inning and was able to throw the fourth as well. But after showing noticeable discomfort, Buehler and the Dodgers staff decided his night was over.
“Certain discomforts you can manage through, where this one tonight, clearly he felt that any more could potentially be damaging,” said manager Dave Roberts. “I think that’s more — you have to default to, certainly, a player with Walker’s intelligence and knowing his body.”
Bruihl’s rough inning
Oddly enough, the Giants’ starter went down to injury in this one, too, but only more dramatically. Jakob Junis had to leave the game four pitches into the sixth inning after collapsing on the mound after having thrown a pitch. Junis immediately grabbed his left leg and promptly left the game, limping off the field with the Giants’ athletic trainer and manager Gabe Kapler.
However, Junis got a fairly easy victory in this one due to the disaster of an inning that was the bottom of the fifth. With Buehler out of the game, Dave Roberts turned to Justin Bruihl to pitch the fifth. The Dodgers’ lefty came on, charged with keeping the game within shooting distance for the visitors, but pretty quickly the inning got out of hand, due to a mixture of bad luck and bad decisions.
It started off harmlessly enough, a routine fly ball to Cody Bellinger for the first out. However, catcher Curt Casali hit a slow rolling ground ball to the right side that he was able to beat out before Gavin Lux could get the throw to first. And then, probably the key play of the entire game. Pinch hitter Austin Slater hit a little nubber in front of the mound that Bruihl went to field. However, he lost his footing and fell about ten feet in front of the mound. Rather than just conceding the hit, gathering himself, and living to fight another day, Bruihl made the awful decision to try to gun down Slater while still sitting on the ground. The throw went wild, and both runners advanced 90 feet.
Now the Dodgers were in a real fix. Briuhl was able to strike out Mike Yastrzemski for the second out, but that is where the Dodgers’ luck ran out. Apparently learning nothing from Tony LaRussa on Thursday, Dave Roberts decided to walk Wilmer Flores to load the bases to pitch to Joc Pederson in a lefty lefty matchup. Which I guess makes sense, but Pederson is having a much better year at the plate than Flores. And sure enough, Joctober delivered a two-run single. This was followed by another run-scoring hit, a single from Darren Ruf. By the time the horrible inning was over, it was now 6-2 in favor of the Giants and they never looked back.
David Price gave up Darren Ruf’s second solo home run of the game in the bottom of the eighth, but it hardly mattered at that point. The Dodgers were done for in this one.
Kershaw to return on Saturday
Saturday’s game will feature a return to the mound of our beloved lefty Clayton Kershaw. Originally, it was thought that Julio Urias would get the Saturday start and Kershaw would throw on Sunday, but after some extensive bullpen work during the week, Urias was given an extra day of rest. All eyes will be on Kershaw to see if he can recapture that early season magic that he had the first few starts of 2022. The game is a Fox Sports exclusive and will start at the usual national broadcast time: 4:00 pm PDT. Then the Dodgers wrap up the road trip with an afternoon game on Sunday.
Cans of Corn…
- Our bullpen has been just awful lately.
- With Buehler’s history of elbow trouble, we need to keep our fingers crossed that the medical tests turn out okay.
- Gavin Lux is having a sneaky good season hitting in the nine-hole. His .291 average is now good for 10th in the National League.
