The Los Angeles Dodgers had a roller coaster of a weekend series against the Atlanta Braves, which shouldn’t come as too much of a surprise given LA’s recent play.
The Boys in Blue dropped their first two games to the Braves, falling Friday 6-2 and Saturday in a 10-1 blowout. But the Dodgers rebounded heading into the new week with a 9-2 win Sunday night and a 9-0 shutout Monday night to earn a split in the four-game series.
All eyes were on the rotation for the series after news that ace Tyler Glasnow would be sidelined for the rest of the 2024 season and postseason, joining Clayton Kershaw and Gavin Stone on the growing list of sidelined Dodger arms.
After the first two games versus the Braves, those worries had only grown. Neither Landon Knack nor Jack Flaherty put together starting performances that exactly inspired confidence in the first two games.
Knack only made it through two innings and gave up five earned runs in the Friday loss, putting the Dodgers in a hole they couldn’t climb out of despite a solid bullpen performance.
To make matters worse, Flaherty put the bullpen right back to work after he only made it through three innings and gave up four runs. The bullpen fatigue showed as it surrendered six more runs in the remaining five innings, though most of those can be credited to a poor performance by veteran Evan Phillips in the sixth.
The biggest concern from the Dodgers’ two defeats, however, should not be the rotation. Flaherty’s poor performance can likely be written off as a one-off day, he’s been reliable all season long—and especially for the Dodgers—after coming over from Detroit in a midseason trade.
And even amid all the injuries, the Dodger rotation remains one of the most deep and talented in the league.
Nor should the concern be seeding. The Dodgers have made the race for the NL West much closer than it needs to be, and they missed an opportunity to set one of their most fierce recent postseason rivals back significantly in their race for the final Wild Card spot with the Mets. But high seeding hasn’t benefited the Dodgers much in recent years and they have fallen to inferior teams both in seeding and talent in the playoffs in numerous years, with the exception of 2020. To succeed in October, they’ll need to be way more concerned with being on top of their game and not what the other side is putting up against them.
The biggest concern should be the offensive performance against NL Cy Young favorite Chris Sale on Friday night. The Dodgers managed only one run and seven baserunners against the Atlanta ace through six innings, and by the time the Braves’ bullpen came in, the game was out of reach.
Dodger fans will remember the lineup’s inability to perform when the lights are brightest. At the heart of their massively disappointing postseason exit last season against the Arizona Diamondbacks was the disappearing act of LA’s middle-of-the-order hitters. Mookie Betts and Freddie Freeman, fresh off MVP-caliber regular season campaigns during the regular season, went a combined one-for-21 in that NLDS sweep.
When a pitcher like Sale takes the mound, especially in the upcoming playoffs, the Dodgers’ star hitters must rise to the occasion. Especially with injuries in their rotation, the Dodgers need to know that their lineup, the best in the league on paper, can jump on these types of aces early to give their younger arms a chance.
Fortunately, the Sunday and Monday games were a sight for sore eyes for weary Dodger fans. The Dodgers outscored the Braves 18-2 in the two contests behind both solid pitching and timely hitting.
The most encouraging sight was Walker Buehler’s start Sunday night. Buehler struggled with his command, walking five Braves, but was able to make it through six innings while only surrendering two earned runs on three hits. It hasn’t been the easiest road back for Buehler coming off Tommy John surgery, but if he can pitch like he did Sunday and like he has most of his young career, he’ll be a key piece for a Dodger rotation that sorely needs him.
The game also featured back-to-back-to-back home runs from Teoscar Hernandez, Tommy Edman and Max Muncy in the ninth inning, showcasing the depth of the Dodger lineup that is dangerously powerful from top to bottom.
Rookie pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto also made a solid, albeit short start Monday with four innings of shutout ball that the bullpen took to the distance for the 9-0 shutout. He was especially good at getting out of jams, and though the Dodgers would like to see him pitch more innings in the future, it was encouraging to see him be effective, even with the briefness of his second start off the injured list.
This is likely how the rest of the regular season will continue to play out for Los Angeles. As the healthy arms experience September fatigue, and arms coming off extended IL stays like Buehler and Yamamoto attempt to ramp back up, there may be bumps in the road.
But the Dodgers need to be much more concerned with how they’ll do when the season resets in October than finishing with a great record or locking up a top seed.
A win in September may not be the difference between winning and losing the World Series, but a key player’s confidence just might.