May 23

Game 46, 2016

Reds at Dodgers, 7:10PM PT, TV: SPNLA, CIN TV, MLBN (out-of-market only)

Clayton Kershaw (6-1, 1.67 ERA) pitches for the Dodgers and Brandon Finnegan (1-2, 4.44 ERA) goes for the Reds.

The Reds can be excused if they feel overmatched: in his last six starts Kershaw’s had at least 10 strikeouts and one walk or fewer. The left-handed Finnegan has struggled in his last three starts, not getting past the sixth inning in any of them while posting a 5.52 ERA over 14 2/3 innings.

Tsao has been placed on the 15-day DL with a right triceps strain retroactive to 5/23. Bolsinger and Avilan have been recalled from Oklahoma City.

Lineup when available.

Fourteen years ago today Shawn Green hit four home runs, went 6-for-6 and amassed 19 total bases against the Brewers:

May 08

Game 31, 2016

Dodgers at Jays, 10:10AM PT, TV: SPNLA

Ross Stripling (0-2, 4.33 ERA) goes for the Dodgers and Marco Estrada (1-2, 2.64 ERA) goes for the Blue Jays. Estrada’s gotten only 10 runs to work with in his five starts this year while Stripling has seen his ERA climb every start since his first, when he threw 7 1/3 innings of no-hit ball and was pulled due to a predetermined pitch count. In two of his last three starts he hasn’t made it to the fifth inning. It’s not for lack of determination, though:

Stripling

Gonzalez will be the Dodgers’ DH, but the first base job is between Utley and Turner. Meanwhile, Russell Martin returns to the catching position for the Jays; he took Dickey’s start off.

From pink bats to specially-designed uniform logos to honorary bat girls to “Pink Out” days in the stands all of MLB will celebrate Mother’s Day in one way or another.

Someone please post the lineup in the comments if I don’t get to it before the game starts (7:10AM my time).

Apr 25

Game 20, 2016

Marlins at Dodgers, 7:10PM PT, TV: SPNLA, FS-F

Don Mattingly returns to Dodger Stadium with a team that’s lost 11 of its first 17 games. The Marlins are not very good right now, and they face the added burden of being in the same division as the Washington Nationals, so they’re already 7 1/2 games behind in the NL East. They do have Giancarlo Stanton and Jose Fernandez, and they have some guy named Bonds as their new hitting coach with Frank Menechino as his assistant. Fun fact: back in 2001 Bonds and Menechino swung at the lowest percentage of pitches of all major leaguers and still reached base at a combined .447 rate. One was more successful than the other: Bonds hit 73 home runs that season; Menechino’s slash line was .242/.369/.374.

They’ll send lefty Wei-Yin Chen to the hill. He’s 0-1 with a 4.91 ERA in three starts. When he was with the Orioles he faced the Dodgers in 2013 and got a win. The Dodgers will counter with the second of their two surprising starters, Ross Stripling, who has a 2.65 ERA in 17 innings but hasn’t gotten a decision yet. Stripling stumbled his last time out in Atlanta when he gave up three runs (two earned) on six hits with four strikeouts and two walks in 3 2/3 innings.

Lineup when available.

Huh. Utley gets a day off. Fine. Gonzalez gets a day off. Okay, but I didn’t know Grandal even owned a first-baseman’s mitt. Pederson and Seager also get days off, presumably because the Marlins are starting a lefty.

Apr 22

Game 17, 2016

Dodgers at Rockies, 5:40PM PT, TV: SPNLA, ROOT Sports

Scott Kazmir (1-1, 6.43 ERA) tries to get his groove back after two consecutive poor starts, both against the Giants. He’s only made one career start against the Rockies. It was at Coors Field and he got the win, but that was in 2007 when Kazmir was a Devil Ray. His opponent will be Jon Gray, the third draft pick overall in 2013. He made his ML debut last year, but tonight will be his first game of this season. He’s a righthander with a fastball, changeup, slider and curve.

Lineup when available.

I got to wondering and looked it up: Utley has the third highest number of hits this young season as a leadoff guy: 16. The two guys ahead of him are Gonzalez with 22 and Puig with 17. (Seager has 14 while Pederson and Hernandez each have 13).

Apr 14

Game 10, 2016

Diamondbacks at Dodgers, 7:10PM PT, TV: SPNLA, FS-A

The D-Backs send lefty Robbie Ray (0-0, 3.00 ERA, 2 runs, 4 hits, 3 strikeouts and 4 walks in 6 innings) to the mound for his second start of the season. The Dodgers send the righthanded Ross Stripling out for his second start after his stunning first one, when he threw 7 1/3 innings of no-hit ball (and got no decision; thanks, bullpen!) against the Giants.

Lineup when available.


Don’t ask me why Barnes is at second. If Utley needs a rest, why not play Kendrick there? Instead, Howie’s at third and Turner gets a day off too. Puig and Gonzalez seem to be the only guys who play every day.

Apr 13

Game 9, 2016

Diamondbacks at Dodgers, 7:10PM PT, TV: SPNLA, FS-A

Old friend Rubby De La Rosa has had horrid luck against the Dodgers, going 0-3 with an 11.21 ERA against them in his career. Overall he’s 22-25 with a 4.61 ERA in his five previous seasons in the big leagues. Alex Wood has similar career stats: he’s 26-27 with a 3.36 ERA in three previous seasons.

Lineup when available.

I hadn’t thought of getting both Kendrick’s and Utley’s bats in the lineup in quite this way, but…we also see Yasmani Grandal making his first start of the season after he came off the DL Tuesday.

Here are some highlights from Opening Day:

First, Mr. Puig at second base switching hands on the base.

Now, here are the two throws to get Castillo at home, Puig to Turner to Ellis.

Apr 09

Game 6, 2016

Dodgers at Giants, 1:05PM PT, TV: SPNLA, CSN-BA

The two aces go at one another for the first time this year: Kershaw (1-0, 0.00 ERA) against Bumgarner (1-0, 5.40 ERA). Kershaw is 9-3 with a 1.16 ERA in 14 starts at the Giants’ home park, while Bumgarner is 13-7 overall against the Dodgers with a 2.45 ERA in 22 appearances.

The Dodgers got 9 hits in Friday night’s game but only converted them into two runs. Had they gotten more young Stripling might have gotten a win for his efforts rather than a no-decision. They are still hitting well: Puig, Utley, Gonzalez, Seager, Ellis and Turner all singled and Pederson got a double. For the second night in a row the bullpen gave up the go-ahead or winning runs.

Lineup when available.


Hmm. Several unfamiliar faces in the lineup against MadBum. I wonder what the reasoning is.

Apr 08

Game 5, 2016

Dodgers at Giants, 7:15PM PT, TV: SPNLA, NBC-BA

Ross Stripling makes his debut against the most bitter rival the Dodgers have in the rival’s home park. Welcome to the big leagues, kid! He’ll face Matt Cain, who’s fallen from previous stardom due to elbow and forearm injuries to the #5 starter’s spot in the Giants’ rotation (which is still better than Tim Lincecum, who hasn’t thrown a pitch since June of last year and is now a free agent, rehabbing from hip surgery).

Puig and Gonzalez have eight and seven hits respectively for the Dodgers in this young season; Seager and Utley have six, Pederson has five. The pitching’s been excellent until Thursday, when not only Wood but the bullpen (saving Louis Coleman, who threw 1 1/3 innings of hitless ball) failed, Wood after four good innings.

Lineup when available.


Carl Crawford gets a day off for the second day in a row.

Dec 07

Winter meetings

Update: The Chapman trade is on hold until MLB finishes a domestic violence investigation of an incident involving Chapman and his girlfriend in October. It’s not pretty, although the police filed no charges.

Police interviewed multiple people, including Chapman, Chapman’s girlfriend, her brother and a man identified as Chapman’s driver, according to the report. No arrests were made “due to conflicting stories and a lack of cooperation from all parties involved,” the report said.

On Day One of the meetings the Dodgers have already traded for Aroldis Chapman, sending two prospects to the Reds. According to Jon Heyman of CBS Sports, Corey Seager, Julio Urias and Jose De Leon are not in the deal.

As the article suggests, getting an elite closer in a trade means your current elite closer may have some bad feelings, understandably so. What they’re going to do, or try to do, with Kenley Jansen is still up in the air.

Earlier in the day the Dodgers signed 34-year-old right-handed starting pitcher Hisashi Iwakuma, a free agent who’d been with the Mariners for four years. Interestingly, he’s thrown fewer pitches in his career than Greinke, who’s three years younger.

They also signed 37-year-old infielder Chase Utley to a one-year deal for $7M, about half what he made last year, a season in which he never fully recovered from an ankle injury he suffered in January.

Oct 12

ALDS Games Four, NLDS Games Three, 2015

Early AL game: Royals at Astros, 10:00AM PT, TV: FS1

The Astros have a 2-1 lead and send rookie Lance McCullers out to try to win the series. The Royals send first-game (but only two innings thanks to rain) starter Yordano Ventura out to keep the Astros from doing that.

Late AL Game: Blue Jays at Rangers, 1:00PM PT, TV: FS1

The Rangers lead the series 2-1 and hope to win at home. They’ll send out Derek Holland, who’s been in 13 post-season games in his career. He and the Rangers will face R.A. Dickey and his knuckleball. This will be Dickey’s first postseason start.

Early NL Game: Cardinals at Cubs 3:00PM PT, TV: TBS

The series is tied 1-1. The Cubs like their chances in this game, and who wouldn’t? They send All Second-Half pitcher Jake Arrieta to the mound to face the Cardinals, who counter with Michael Wacha.

Late NL Game: Dodgers at Mets, 5:30PM PT, TV: TBS

First, I think this game is going to start on TNT rather than TBS unless the Cubs-Cards game is a blowout; I don’t believe the first game will come in under 2 1/2 hours as it would have to for there to be a seamless switch at 5:30PM PT.

Second, Utley. The latest word is that his appeal is “unlikely to be heard today.”

Utley’s representatives and the Major League Baseball Players’ Association asked for time to prepare their case, which would make Utley eligible to play until a hearing takes place.

Now, the game itself. The Dodgers send Brett Anderson to the hill in his second postseason appearance (2012 for the As), while the Mets send Matt Harvey and his “will he or won’t he throw more than 180 innings this year?” controversy (he wound up throwing 189 1/3 in the regular season) to the mound. Anderson was the best ground-ball pitcher in the big leagues this year, inducing them at a 66.3% rate. Harvey was 8-3 with a 2.23 ERA at home, far better than he was on the road.

This will be the first postseason game ever played at Citi Field; all previous Mets’ appearances were at Shea Stadium.

Lineup when available.

What? No Utley?

Also: