Dodgers Week 20 In Review: Bearded Billingsley, Plus The Cruz & Hanley Show

The left side of the Dodgers' infield paced the offense last week, as Luis Cruz and Hanley Ramirez powered an offensive resurgence that helped the Dodgers to their third 7-3 road trip of the season. But they weren't alone on the hero stage, as a bearded Chad Billingsley didn't give up a thing in a stellar week for the blue crew.

The Dodgers' bats came alive on the road, scoring over six runs per game and more runs than in the previous two weeks combined. The Dodgers hit nine home runs in seven games during the week, three more long balls than they hit in 28 games in June.

Coupled with the starting pitchers pitching deep into games, the Dodgers won five of their seven games and ended the week in first place, a half-game ahead of San Francisco.

Dodger Batter of the Week: The best week of his career lifted Luis Cruz over Hanley Ramirez for this award, but both were great. Cruz hit .458 with two home runs and three doubles, while Ramirez hit .367 with three doubles, three home runs, and nine runs batted in.

Honorable mention goes to James Loney, who homered twice, matching his season total heading into the week.

Dodger Pitcher of the Week: This was one of the easiest calls of the season, as Chad Billingsley continued his dominant second half run with 15 scoreless innings and two wins. The starters as a whole averaged nearly seven innings per outing.

Week 20 Record: 5-2
45 runs scored (6.42 per game)
23 runs allowed (3.29 per game)
.774 pythagorean winning percentage

Season Record: 67-55
491 runs scored (4.02 per game)
452 runs allowed (3.70 per game)
.538 pythagorean winning percentage (66-56)

Transactions:

• Monday: Utility man Jerry Hairston Jr. was placed on the 15-day disabled list with left hip inflammation, retroactive to August 12. Elian Herrera was recalled from Triple A Albuquerque.
• Sunday: Reliever Scott Elbert, who struck out all six batters he faced on a rehab assignment with Double A Chattanooga, was activated from the disabled list, with Herrera getting optioned to Triple A. The move left the Dodgers with 12 position players, and 13 pitchers.

Game Results:

• Monday: Dodgers 5, Pirates 4
• Tuesday: Dodgers 11, Pirates 0
• Wednesday: Dodgers 9, Pirates 3
• Thursday: Pirates 10, Dodgers 6
• Friday: Braves 4, Dodgers 3 (11)
• Saturday: Dodgers 6, Braves 2
• Sunday: Dodgers 5, Braves 0

Upcoming Week: The Dodgers run the Cody Ross Gauntlet this week, returning home to play the Giants and Marlins.

Previous Weeks In Review: Week 1 | Week 2 | Week 3 | Week 4 | Week 5 | Week 6 | Week 7 | Week 8 | Week 9 | Week 10 | Week 11 | Week 12 | Week 13 | Week 14 | Week 15 | Week 16 | Week 17 | Week 18 | Week 19

Week 20 Stats