Dodgers Week 3: Breaking even, again

For the third consecutive week to open the season, the Dodgers end play on Sunday as a .500 team. Last week against the Jekyll and Hyde offense looked great in two games against the Giants but were also shut out once in San Francisco.

Over the weekend against the Cubs it was mostly frustration on offense, scoring exactly two runs in all three games, with only a late rally and David Peralta’s walk-off single on Saturday preventing a Chicago sweep.

The Dodgers also lost catcher Will Smith to concussion symptoms, removing one of LA’s three best hitters from an inconsistent lineup.

Batter of the week

It was a hell of a week for Max Muncy, who began the week with one home runs and two RBI on the season, but in six games (five starts) against Giants and Cubs hit five home runs and drove in 12. That included two two-homer games in San Francisco.

Pitcher of the week

The rotation was perfectly fine, with none of the starters allowing more than three runs. We’ll go with Michael Grove, who looked like a different pitcher, allowing only a run in 5⅔ innings, with six strikeouts. The right-hander, who allowed 12 runs in his first two starts, said Saturday against Chicago was the first time this season he was able to do all of his between-start activities (bullpen session, throwing, lifting weights) after dealing with strep throat.

Week 3 results

3-3 record
25 runs scored (4.17 per game)
23 runs allowed (3.83 per game)
.538 pythagorean win percentage

Year to date

8-8 record
85 runs scored (5.31 per game)
67 runs allowed (4.19 per game)
.607 pythagorean win percentage (10-6)

Miscellany

Foul play: In a tie game with the bases loaded in the sixth inning on Wednesday against the Giants, Freddie Freeman fouled off 11 pitches from lefty Taylor Rogers, including nine in a row before walking home the go-ahead run on the 15th pitch of the duel, igniting the Dodgers’ comeback win. “Sometimes the little things can change a game,” Freeman told David Vassegh after the game on AM 570.

It was the most pitches in one plate appearance by a Dodger since Justin Turner saw 16 pitches in walk against Johnny Cueto on May 26, 2014. Before that, the last time a Dodger saw that many pitches was in 2004, when Alex Cora homered to end an 18-pitch battle against Matt Clement.

Going, going, gone: Andre Jackson was pressed into duty down a run in the eighth inning on Friday, but allowed five runs, with the right-hander tipping his pitches. Three came on home runs in the eighth, the first Dodgers reliever to allow three homers in one inning since Terry Mullholland in 2002. Another home run came in the ninth, making Jackson the first Dodgers reliever to give up four home runs in one game since Johnny Klippstein in 1958. “Obviously it wasn’t my best stuff,” Jackson said. “It comes in waves. Maybe some tipping in there, but I definitely left a lot of pitches in the middle of the plate.”

A late comeback: Held scoreless with two hits through eight innings on Saturday, the Dodgers rallied for three hits in the ninth, ending with a single to right field by pinch-hitter David Peralta to score both James Outman and Miguel Vargas, the latter with a picture-perfect slide (especially from the overhead view). It was the sixth walk-off RBI event in Peralta’s career (three singles, a home run, a walk, and a hit by pitch), and the first walk-off win for the Dodgers in 2023. “It’s a moment you always dream of as a kid, the walk-off, everything,” Peralta said. “You get to celebrate with your teammates.”

Transactions

Sunday: Will Smith landed on the seven-day concussion injured list, retroactive to Thursday, and the Dodgers signed Austin Wynns to backup Austin Barnes in the interim. Pitcher Alex Reyes was transferred to the 60-day injured list to make room on the 40-man roster. These were the first transactions for the team since opening day.

Game results

• Monday: Dodgers 9, Giants 1
• Tuesday: Giants 5, Dodgers 0
• Wednesday: Dodgers 10, Giants 5
• Friday: Cubs 8, Dodgers 2
• Saturday: Dodgers 2, Cubs 1
• Sunday: Cubs 3, Dodgers 2

Previous reviews: Week 1 | Week 2

The week ahead

The Dodgers run the Ed Lynch gauntlet, hosting the Mets for three games to finish out the homestand, including a day game Wednesday, followed by four games against the Cubs at Wrigley Field, the final three during the day.