Steve Webb
CHAVEZ RAVINE, CA — They say you never forget your first. And after three nondescript starts, Ryan Pepiot now has gotten his first win the major leagues. The Dodgers’ right-handed prospect was a last minute addition to the roster, but he pitched like a seasoned pro. And, thanks to production from the newly resurgent middle of the batting order, the Dodgers scored enough to secure the win for Pepiot, getting out to a 4-1 lead before he exited the game. The Dodgers tacked on a critical insurance run late, and held on for a 5-2 victory against the Colorado Rockies.
Mama, there goes that man!
Rockies infielder Jose Iglesias has been a one-man wrecking crew against the Dodgers this season, and that was no different on Tuesday night. The guy whose only two home runs of the year are against the Dodgers did damage in his first at-bat of the night. With a man on first, he ripped a slider low in the zone to deep left center field. It bounced off the wall for a run-scoring double and Ryan Pepiot found himself on the wrong side of a 1-0 early in the game.
Return of the Max
However, the Rockies would not be in the lead for long in this one. In the bottom of the second, the Dodgers would get on the board with a call to Dr. Longball. After Will Smith worked a leadoff walk from starter German Marquez, Max Muncy dug in for what would be a very short plate appearance indeed.
Muncy liked what he saw in the first pitch out of Marquez’s hand, and pulled a long fly into right field. Outfielder Connor Joe went back to the wall for a play, but the ball landed in the home run seats instead for another Max Muncy bomb. That makes three dingers in the last seven games for Munce, so signs of life are definitely evident.
Pepiot gets ahead and stays ahead
Now pitching with a lead, Ryan Pepiot was in the zone all night long. 57 of his 85 pitches were strikes, and he was ahead in the count in most of the at-bats while he was on the mound. He only walked one Rockie, and had six strikeout, mixing the fastball, slider, and change-up to great effect. His final line for the night: 5.0 IP, 4 H, 1 ER, 1 BB, 6 K. It was a very good night to call your first win in the bigs.
Betts’ blast, Turner’s knock pad Dodger lead
By the time Pepiot exited the game after the top of the fifth, his Dodger teammates had put a couple more runs on the board, scoring single runs in the 3rd and 4th innings. In the third, Mookie Betts smashed his first home run since his return from the IL, a pull shot to left field off a Marquez slider. Like Muncy, Betts attacked the first pitch, another good sign from a hitter who is sometimes a little too passive early in counts.
Then in the fourth, Max Muncy banged a double into the right field corner to lead off the inning. He came home on one of Justin Turner‘s patented opposite field singles to make the score 4-1. If Turner and Muncy continue to contribute at this level the rest of the way, those early struggles will be just an unpleasant memory. Keep it up, boys.
Late run erases Bryant homer
Things were pretty quiet in the middle innings, but the Rockies did cut the deficit to 2 runs in the top of the sixth. Kris Bryant, the big free agent signing by the Rox over the winter, finally hit his first home run in a Colorado uni, banging a shot to center that just evaded Cody Bellinger‘s jumping attempt.
However, the Bryant homer was neutralized in the bottom of the eighth when the Dodgers put together a nice “small ball” rally. With two out, Max Muncy walked took third on a Justin Turner single to left. Then, Trayce Thompson came to the plate, fresh off his big blast on the 4th of July. Thompson hit a weak liner over the infield to right, and Muncy scampered home with a critical insurance run.
Bullpen solid in 4 innings of work
With Craig Kimbrel still nursing that back injury from the line drive on Sunday, the Dodgers had to do a little shuffling to their usual bullpen usage. Phil Bickford was called on to pitch the sixth and seventh, and other than the Bryant homer, acquitted himself quite well.
Evan Phillips came on for the final out of the eighth, and had his nasty stuff working, pitching 1.1 scoreless innings, and adding to his All Star game case. Finally Brusdar Graterol came on for the 9th, and though he gave up a hit, he struck out two. The final out was recorded on a groundball to first, and the Dodgers’ had their fifth victory of the homestand secured.
White pitches for the sweep on Wednesday
Now the Dodgers are starting to roll a little bit. Other than the hiccup in Colorado last week, the Dodgers have played good baseball, winning 11 of the last 15 games. They go for the sweep on Wednesday, throwing Mitch White, who had been Tuesday original starter until the late scratch. That will move Gonsolin, Anderson, Kershaw, and Urias into the Cubs series on the weekend most likely. After that, it’s the Cards and the Angels and then it’s the All Star Break. It would be nice if the team could extend their lead a bit in this little stretch, and go into the second half with some momentum.
Cans of Corn…
- Zach McKinstry has started a rehab assignment with OKC.
- To make room for Pepiot, Reyes Moronta was option to AAA.
- After being a Dodger for less than a week, Ian Gibaut has been picked up off waivers by the Reds.
- Max Muncy is slugging .739 in his last seven games.
- Mookie looks good in his return. No real signs of any restrictions in motion.
- Gavin Lux hit a triple, but got caught in a rundown on an infield grounder. Does that contact play ever work? Seriously, how many times do we need to lose a runner before we rethink the wisdom of doing it?
