Apr 23

Game 21, 2018

Marlins at Dodgers, 7:10 PM PDT, TV: SPNLA, FS-F, MLBN (out-of-market only)

It’ll be the Marlins’ LHP Jarlin Garcia (1-0, 0.86 ERA) vs. the Dodgers’ #1 prospect, Walker Buehler, making his first big league start. Garcia has made two starts this year, the first of his big league career. They’ve been good ones, too: he went 10 1/3 innings against the Mets and the Yankees without allowing a hit until he gave up a double in the fifth inning of the second one. That ties the modern MLB record. Bobo Holloman also did it in 1953 for the St. Louis Browns, according to the Elias Sports Bureau. The Marlins are monitoring his innings just as the Dodgers will do with Buehler and with Urias when he gets back. In 2017 Garcia led Miami in appearances with 68 and logged 53 1/3 innings, mainly as a lefty specialist.

Buehler threw only 98 innings all of 2017, and although the Dodgers haven’t confirmed a speculated target of between 135 to 150 innings this year, they do want to limit his work. He had Tommy John surgery in 2015. He’s made three starts at AAA OKC in 2018, going 1-0 with a 2.10 ERA, 16 Ks and four walks in 13 innings.

Here are the Dodgers’ plans for Buehler.

Buehler, the Dodgers’ top prospect, will probably also start in Saturday’s doubleheader against the Giants before being returned to Triple-A Oklahoma City. At least that’s manager Dave Roberts’ story and he was sticking to it on Sunday.

Today in Dodgers’ history:

  • 1958 In a 7-6 loss to Chicago at the LA Coliseum, two Dodger mainstays from Brooklyn reach career milestones. First baseman Gil Hodges, who will finish his 18-year major league tenure with 370 home runs, hits his 300th career round-tripper, and Captain Pee Wee Reese, a future Hall of Fame shortstop, plays in his 2000th game.
  • 1999 Fernando Tatis becomes the only player in major league history to hit two grand slams in the same game in one inning. The Cardinal third baseman hits both off Dodger starter Chan Ho Park in an 11-run third, setting the major league mark. The third baseman’s eight RBIs in one inning also breaks the old record of six.
  • 2000 The Dodgers sweep the Reds to notch their 1,000th win over the Reds, baseball’s oldest professional franchise. Since 1970, Los Angeles is the only National League franchise to play over .500 ball (120-115) in Cincinnati (Riverfront Stadium/Cinergy Field).

Note: Fernando Tatis’s son Fernando Tatis Jr. is currently playing for the AA San Antonio Missions.

In case you missed it, Brandon Belt had a 21-pitch at-bat for the Giants in their defeat of the Angels today. Afterward he said “When I’m in the field I hate it when a batter keeps fouling pitches off. I’m like ‘Dude, just put it in play. It’s not that hard. Let’s go.’ So I basically had to apologize to everybody after that.”

Lineup when available.


Eric Stephen notes that all three Dodger catchers are in the lineup: Barnes at 2B, Farmer at 3B and Grandal behind the plate. Seager gets the night off.