Jake Dicker
Tonight, the Dodgers clinched their 7th consecutive NL West division title with a 7-3 win over the Baltimore Orioles. Walker Buehler was lights out, racking up 11 strikeouts through 7 scoreless innings, and walking none. In division clinching games, Buehler is now 2-0 with a 0.00 ERA in 13.2 innings pitched. With his 11 strikeouts tonight, Buehler reached the 200 strikeout mark for the season, the first time he has reached that milestone in his young career. Gavin Lux broke his 0-13 skid with a 3-4 night, including a double and his first career home run, a 400 foot shot to right center field. Corey Seager added two home runs of his own.
Now, the Dodgers are playing for home field advantage throughout the NL playoffs, and in the World Series if they can catch the Yankees and Astros for the best record in baseball. Both the Yankees and Astros lost tonight, which means the Dodgers are currently just 1 game behind both teams. The boys in blue are the first team in baseball to clinch a playoff spot.
In other news around the league, Belli vs Yeli has come to an unfortunate ending. Milwaukee Brewers outfielder and reigning NL MVP Christian Yelich fouled a ball off his right knee, resulting in a fractured knee cap, ending his 2019 season. This seemingly opens the door for Cody Bellinger to run away with the NL MVP award if he continues to play at a high level.
Justin Turner was scratched from today’s lineup, due to an ankle injury. He had an x-ray taken, which revealed no damage, but will have an MRI if the injury does not improve. Edwin Rios was called up to the active roster to compensate for JT needing some extra rest.
Fasten your seatbelts folks, October is just around the corner. Hopefully the Dodgers will be popping bottles three more times this fall.
