Simulating the Dodgers’ 2020 season: Game 52 vs. Rockies

This is the 38th installment of an ongoing series, where my dad and I will simulate each game on the Dodgers schedule until real Dodger baseball returns. Catch up on the rest of the series here!

Last time out, we won two out of three games with a depleted lineup against Cleveland, moving to four games ahead in the National League West.

This time, we take on the 18-33 Rockies, in last place in the division, for four games in Colorado. This is in the midst of a two-and-a-half week stretch without days off for the Dodgers, so we’ll have to take care of our bullpen in Coors Field.

Cody Bellinger will miss this series with a mild hamstring strain, but will be back in time for the next one, against the Mets.

Today, we’ll have Alex Wood (5-2, 2.47 ERA) against Antonio Senzatela (3-2, 4.14 ERA).

Watch here or scroll below to find out what happened. If you want to be notified when we go live with future simulations and chime in with your live feedback and/or input on managerial decisions, follow me on Twitch!

Things started out well for the Dodger offense at Coors Field, although two early baserunning mistakes cost more. Mookie Betts led off with a walk, but was caught stealing second. After Max Muncy flew out, Justin Turner singled and Corey Seager doubled him home, taking a 1-0 lead. A.J. Pollock singled through the infield, and Seager was thrown out at home, cutting the inning short.

The Rockies struck back against Wood, scoring one in the second on a sac fly and opening up a 3-1 lead after a Wood wild pitch scored Garrett Hampson in the fourth and an RBI David Dahl single in the fifth.

Now trailing by two runs, the Dodgers struck back in the bottom of the fifth. Turner reached first on an error to lead off the inning, and advanced to second on a single by Seager. Pollock grounded into a double play, advancing Turner to third, and Turner ended up scoring on a wild pitch to make it 3-2.

That’s when things really went south for the Dodgers. The Rockies scored a combined five runs in the seventh and eighth off of Wood and Scott Alexander, putting the game squarely out of reach. Seager hit his 10th home run of the year in the top of the ninth, completing a 4-for-4 day, but it was too little, too late.

Here’s the box score:

Among the many frustrating things about this box score: a full half of the Rockies’ 14 hits were for extra bases. Hopefully we can turn things around in the following three games.

Next time: we finish our series against Colorado. Walker Buehler (2-5, 3.81 ERA) will start things off against Jeff Hoffman (2-2, 7.53 ERA), followed by David Price (7-2, 3.92 ERA) against Kyle Freeland (0-2, 5.37 ERA), before Julio Urías (4-2, 3.84 ERA) takes on Germán Márquez (5-3, 3.38 ERA). See you then!