Cody Snavely
Game 65, 6/6/2024: Dodgers 11, Pirates 7
PITTSBURGH, PA—The Los Angeles Dodgers wrapped up their three-game series with the Pirates, sending right-handed pitcher Walker Buehler to the mound to avoid the sweep.
It has been a thrilling and unpredictable series for the team. One night, their league-leading pitching was dominant, with Tyler Glasnow leading the charge, but the offense was nowhere to be found against rookie right-handed pitcher Jared Jones.
The next night, the pitching imploded, with James Paxton giving up six earned runs in less than two innings, but the offense kept them in the game, scoring three off 2023 College World Champion and last year’s first-round pick Paul Skenes.
So, what team were the fans going to see today? Then the Dodgers offense, in a show of strength, decided to show up, starting off the game with a three-run first inning thanks to the trio of Mookie Betts, Shohei Ohtani, and Freddie Freeman, who capped off the inning with a three-run bomb of Pirates left-hander Bailey Falter.
However, that would be all the offense could muster for the next three innings as the Pirates chipped away, eventually tying the game with a two-out, two-run homer by Nick Gonzales.
Walker Buehler was not sharp and could not give the Dodgers innings in this one. He pitched only three innings while allowing four runs (three earned) on seven hits, raising his season ERA to 4.82.
Make it back-to-back medical starts for the former Cy Young finalist, who is still working off the rust from his second career Tommy John Surgery.
Luckily for Buehler and the Dodgers, the offense would wake up from their slumber, bursting open with a six-run fifth inning, which started off with a go-ahead home run by Teoscar Hernández, Enrique Hernández RBI double, three-run homerun by Mookie Betts and an RBI double by Miguel Vargas putting the Dodgers up eleven to four.
The Dodgers’ bullpen would also pick up Buehler, eating up the innings the righty could provide tonight.
However, the Pirates would make it close after a three-run bomb by former Dodger international prospect Oneil Cruz off closer Evan Phillips.
The Dodgers would be successful in avoiding the sweep, but now a bigger task awaits them as they finish their East Coast road trip with a three-game set with the New York Yankees.
However, hopefully, this offensive showcase will follow them to the Bronx, and the club can revert back to its winning ways with a hopeful .500 road trip.
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