Dodgers Week 17: Offense cures most ills

The Dodgers last week lost their hottest hitter for an extended period, their bullpen blew three late leads, the defense made errors at a record rate, and the team endured a 157-minute rain delay. But thanks to an offense clicking again on all cylinders, the Dodgers simply bludgeoned their way to five wins in seven games.

A series split in Philadelphia included both the rain delay and two of the three bullpen meltdowns, including some consternation over Kenley Jansen saying later he probably shouldn’t have stayed in the game after getting hit on the foot by a comebacker, which was news to Dave Roberts.

YouTube was the setting for the second bullpen loss, a four-run seventh inning against three pitchers sealing the Dodgers’ fate on Thursday. A third blown lead was the worst of all, with a 6-0 advantage erased on Saturday at home, but the Dodgers offense was able to sweep this latest mistake under the rug.

The Dodgers slammed 21 home runs during the week, six more than any other MLB team (Yankees, Astros), and had a .967 OPS as a team.

That was enough to offset a defense that made 13 errors last week, including setting a Los Angeles Dodgers record with seven straight games with at least two errors, a streak that ended on Sunday. The Dodgers allowed 10 unearned runs last week, matching their total for all of May, a 26-game month.

Batter of the week

The offense was so outstanding and full of worthy candidates, with eight different players hitting multiple home runs, eight players driving in at least four, and eight players scoring at least five runs. But the pick here is Matt Beaty, who was a supernova after rejoining the team Monday. Beaty only batted 12 times but tied for the team lead with three home runs and was second with seven RBI. He hit what would have been a game-winning home run Tuesday but that was one of three Dodgers bullpen cough-ups during the week. So Beaty made up for it with another game-winning three-run shot, this one on Saturday night at home in the eighth inning in Miami, highlighting a 6-for-11 week.

Honorable mention goes to many. Kiké Hernandez led the team in hits (10) and RBI (9), Max Muncy and Cody Bellinger each hit three home runs, as did Joc Pederson during a week that saw the Dodgers face seven right-handed starting pitchers. A.J. Pollock continued his torrid return with a 1.232 OPS.

Pitcher of the week

Clayton Kershaw allowed just one run in 12 innings in his two starts, whiffing 17. His season-high 10 strikeouts against the Marlins on Saturday night was the 60th regular season game with double-digit strikeouts for Kershaw, and his first such game since Apr. 15, 2018.

Kershaw has pitched at least six innings in all 17 starts in 2019, the fourth-longest streak of his career and his longest since a 23-game stretch in 2015. Kershaw leads the staff this season averaging 6.53 innings per start, which ranks fourth in the majors (Hyun-jin Ryu is sixth at 6.47).

A weekend sweep of the Marlins saw Ryu, Kershaw and Walker Buehler combine for one run allowed in 20 innings, with 28 strikeouts.

Week 17 results

5-2 record
58 runs scored (8.29 per game)
27 runs allowed (3.86 per game)
.802 pythagorean record

Season to date

67-35 record
557 runs scored (5.46 per game)
392 runs allowed (3.84 per game)
.655 pythagorean record (67-35)

Miscellany

Destined for home: The Dodgers executed a double steal in the fourth inning on Monday in Philadelphia, with Joc Pederson cutting his route to second base short but drawing the throw, allowing Austin Barnes to scamper home and avoid the tag on the return throw. Barnes is the first Dodgers catcher to steal home since Paul Lo Duca against San Francisco on June 24, 2004. Lo Duca, like Barnes, was on the front end of a double steal, this one with Juan Encarnacion stealing second against Brett Tomko and A.J. Pierzynski.

Everyone chips in: In a blowout win Monday, all eight Dodgers starting position players had at least one hit, one run, and one RBI. It was the first time eight Dodgers starters did that since Sept. 13, 2014 against San Francisco.

Stop the presses: Hyun-jin Ryu on Friday against the Marlins walked two batters in the second inning. It was news not just because it was just the second time in 19 starts that he walked multiple batters in a game (Ryu walked three in the game on Friday). It was memorable because it was the first time all season Ryu walked two batters in a single inning. Adding to the rarity, his first walk was against Harold Ramirez, who entered Friday with a 3.7% walk rate that ranked 258th among 264 hitters with at least 200 plate appearances. Ryu’s walk rate entering Friday was 2.5%, second-best among 160 pitchers with 50 or more innings. Baseball.

Transactions

Monday: Casey Sadler, acquired from Tampa Bay on July 3, was recalled from Triple-A to join the Dodgers bullpen. Left-hander Zac Rosscup was designated for assignment, leaving an open space on the 40-man roster.

Monday: One day after getting hit by a pitch in Boston, Chris Taylor’s second MRI exam — this on in Philadelphia — revealed a non-displaced left forearm fracture, and he was placed on the 10-day injured list. Taylor told reporters the normal time frame for this injury is 4-6 weeks. Matt Beaty returned to the majors to take his spot on the active roster, five days short of the usual required 10-day stay on optional assignment because Beaty was replacing an injured player.

Thursday: Sadler was optioned back to Oklahoma City after pitching twice in three days, and Caleb Ferguson was recalled from Triple-A in a bullpen swap.

Friday: Much like Beaty, Sadler was able to return to the majors inside of 10 days because he was replacing a player going on the injured list. This time it was Dylan Floro placed on the shelf for 10 days thanks to neck inflammation.

Game results

• Monday: Dodgers 16, Phillies 2
• Tuesday: Phillies 9, Dodgers 8
• Wednesday: Dodgers 7, Phillies 2
• Thursday: Phillies 7, Dodgers 6
• Friday: Dodgers 2, Marlins 1
• Saturday: Dodgers 10, Marlins 6
• Sunday: Dodgers 9, Marlins 0

Stats

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

The week ahead

The Dodgers run the Orlando Cabrera gauntlet this week, finishing off a road trip with another two-day series with the Angels bookended by off days, then hit the road again with three games in Washington D.C. The series finale against the Nationals will, in addition to SportsNet LA, also be televised by TBS. The Angels’ broadcast of both Freeway Series games will be on Fox Sports West.

Washington’s rotation for the weekend is a guess. The series could very well see the return of Max Scherzer off the injured list (which would make for a fantastic 1-2 Cy Young Award matchup Friday), if he doesn’t pitch Thursday that is.