Game 55, 2020

Athletics at Dodgers, 6:40 PM PDT, TV: ESPN (out-of-market only), NBCSCA, SPNLA

RHP Frankie Montas (3-4, 5.86 ERA) pitches for the visiting As. He’ll be opposed by RHP Dustin May (1-1, 2.68 ERA) of the Dodgers. This will be Montas’s first start in nine days; he was off for paternity leave (Congrats and best wishes!). In his last five starts he’s gone no longer than 5 1/3 innings and has a horrid 10.80 ERA in those appearances. May is coming off a 5 1/3 inning relief stint in a game in which he was announced as the starter. Instead he came in in the third inning and got credit for a hold in the Dodgers’ 7-5 win.

Here are Gonsolin’s ten Ks in Sunday’s loss:

Obligatory “if the playoffs began today” feature.

Wild Card Series (begin Sept. 29)
Best-of-three format, with higher seed serving as the home team for all three games

AL matchups
No. 8 Blue Jays vs. No. 1 Rays
No. 7 Indians vs. No. 2 White Sox
No. 6 Astros vs. No. 3 A’s
No. 5 Yankees vs. No. 4 Twins

NL matchups
No. 8 Phillies vs. No. 1 Dodgers
No. 7 Reds vs. No. 2 Cubs
No. 6 Cardinals vs. No. 3 Braves
No. 5 Marlins vs. No. 4 Padres

Today in Dodgers’ history:

  • 1925 Robins starter Burleigh Grimes accounts for seven outs in just three plate appearances in the team’s 3-2 loss to Chicago, a 12-inning game played at Cubs Park. The Brooklyn right-hander follows grounding into two double plays by hitting into a 6-4-3-2 triple play.
  • 1926 At Ebbets Field, the aging 18-year veteran outfielder Zack Wheat hits his last homer as a Dodger, but severely pulls a muscle nearing second. The future Hall of Famer needs to rest nearly five minutes before completing his trip to home plate, making it the longest home run trot in major league history.
  • 1947 On an off day, the Dodgers clinched the National League pennant when Chicago takes the nightcap of the twin bill against St. Louis. Although it is past midnight when the good news about their beloved team reaches the borough, Brooklynites begin to gather on Flatbush Avenue for an impromptu celebration.
  • 1954 Karl Spooner, in his major league debut, blanks the Giants at Ebbets Field 3-0. The 23 year-old Dodger southpaw fans 15 batters, including six straight, recording the most strikeouts in a first appearance by a rookie.
  • 1957 Duke Snider, with his second round-tripper in the Dodgers’ 7-3 victory over Philadelphia, hits his 40th home run, tying Ralph Kiner’s National League record of five consecutive seasons with forty or more homers. The Duke of Flatbush’s seventh-inning homer off future Hall of Famer Robin Roberts will prove to be the last one ever hit at Ebbets Field.
  • 1976 Right-hander Don Sutton goes the distance to become a twenty-game winner for the first and last time when the Dodgers beat the Giants at Candlestick Park, 3-1. The future Hall of Famer will compile a 324-256 (.559) record during his 23-year career in the bigs.
  • 1986 Dodger hurler Fernando Valenzuela (20-10) two-hits Houston en route to a 9-2 victory at the Astrodome. The 25 year-old southpaw becomes the first Mexican to win 20 games in the major leagues.

Lineup when available.

Joc Pederson is back from emergency leave and DHing tonight.

147 thoughts on “Game 55, 2020

  1. Maybe A’s are not showing off their defence in case they play the Dodgers in the WS and want to give them a new wrinkle they aren’t used to.

  2. https://www.toddradom.com/blog/elephants-together-since-july-10-1902

    The A’s and Their Elephants, Together Since July 10, 1902
    I recently received a Twitter inquiry about the Oakland Athletics’ uniform sleeve patch. The A’s sport the symbol of an elephant on their uniforms, a visual association that dates back to the franchise’s second season. Why an elephant? Hardly a symbol of athleticism, the Athletics’ elephant has a unique story attached to it, one that dates back to July 10, 1902.

    Athletics owner and manager Connie Mack explained it all in his 1950 autobiography, “My 66 Years in the Big Leagues:”

    The insignia of our Philadelphia Athletics, as you know, is the White Elephant. The story of acquiring it is an interesting one. In 1902 the Baltimore Club forfeited its franchise in the newly formed American League. Its spot was filled by the New York Highlanders, “the acorn from which sprung the mighty Yankee oak.”

    The astute John McGraw took advantage of the opportunity and jumped from the crumbling Orioles to the New York Giants, a leap to fame and fortune. When the sportswriters gathered around McGraw to fire a barrage of questions, one of the questions was, “What do you think of the Philadelphia A’s?”

    “White elephants!” quickly retorted Mr. McGraw. “Mr. B. F. Shibe has a white elephant on his hands.”

    Research shows that McGraw made these remarks on July 10, 1902, and the elephant connection has endured, albeit with many twists and turns.

  3. Well. I missed a lot over the last few innings when I was doing bedtime routine with my son.

  4. Did that just tie the MLB record for the most number of players named Kemp stealing a base on the same day?

  5. I am looking forward to a May-October (b)romance if Dustin keeps landing that breaking ball.

  6. Muncy was just said to have started his career in Oakland but he is no longer the player was ther—or is he?

  7. Using the new iOS 14 update to watch the game and be on this site at the same time. Real time comments.