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The Dodgers will try once more for a Los Angeles franchise record for wins in a season, looking for more offense in the middle game of their weekend series against the Rockies on Saturday night in Denver.
In their 9-1 loss in the opener on Friday night, the Dodgers were held without an extra-base hit for the eighth time this season. They are 0-8 in those games.
It was just the fifth time in the 23-year history of Coors Field that the Dodgers didn’t have an extra-base hit, and the first such game since Sept. 14, 2008. Almost fittingly, two of those five games were in 2003, when the Dodgers had one of the worst offensive teams in baseball history.
This year’s team is an actual good offense, even if the 3.68 runs per game in September is trying to convince us otherwise. The 2017 club has already set franchise records for extra-base hits (546) and home runs (220), and with 306 doubles is just two away from breaking another mark.
In 195 games at Coors Field, which opened in 1995, the Dodgers have averaged 6.03 runs per game, and 5.70 runs per game since the humidor was installed in 2002. So far in 2017, the Dodgers are averaging 4.63 runs per game in eight games in Denver.
When the Dodgers score three or fewer runs at Coors Field, they are 7-44 (.137). When they score four or more runs there, they are 93-51 (.646).
Pitching matchup
Clayton Kershaw makes his final regular season start of the year, and his third in Denver this season. He allowed three home runs in six innings in a loss on Apr. 8, and allowed two runs in seven innings in a win on May 12.
Kershaw has a career 4.58 ERA in Denver, but since the start of 2013 is 6-1 with a 3.32 ERA in nine starts at Coors Field, with 56 strikeouts and 10 walks in 59⅔ innings.
German Marquez has a bit of an Alex Wood situation on his hands this season. After posting a 3.88 ERA in his first 19 starts, with 11 home runs allowed, Marquez has allowed 13 home runs in his last nine starts, with a 5.55 ERA during that time.
Game info
Time: 5:10 p.m. PT
TV: SportsNet LA, MLB Network