True Blue LA - May 3: Dodgers 3, Giants 1Where The Dodger Dogs Are Always Grilledhttps://cdn.vox-cdn.com/community_logos/49563/truebluela_fav.png2022-05-03T22:17:22-07:00http://www.truebluela.com/rss/stream/228203632022-05-03T22:17:22-07:002022-05-03T22:17:22-07:00Urías on target as Dodgers take opener with Giants
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<figcaption>Photo by Brian Rothmuller/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images</figcaption>
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<p>Julio Urías pounds the strike zone in LA’s 3-1 win</p> <p id="QwNkeq">By law, every <a href="https://www.truebluela.com/">Dodgers</a>-Giants game is required to be close late, and Tuesday night was no exception. Runs are at a premium this season across the sport, and the combination of two excellent pitching staffs and <a href="https://www.baseballprospectus.com/news/article/74097/moonshot-2022-mlb-baseball-higher-drag/">a deadened</a> <a href="https://go.redirectingat.com?id=66960X1516590&xs=1&url=https%3A%2F%2Ftheathletic.com%2F3272450%2F2022%2F04%2F26%2Fbaseballs-arent-flying-as-far-and-home-runs-are-down-across-mlb-is-it-the-ball-itself%2F&referrer=sbnation.com&sref=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.truebluela.com%2F2022%2F5%2F3%2F23056314%2Fdodgers-giants-julio-urias-chris-taylor-carlos-rodon-low-scoring" rel="sponsored nofollow noopener" target="_blank">baseball</a> limited the output to just four total runs between the two National League West titans. Los Angeles scored three of them to take the series opener at Dodger Stadium.</p>
<p id="qrMuoN">Counting the postseason in 2021, a third of the 24 games between the Dodgers and Giants were decided by one run. Five more battles saw a two-run final margin. Each team won twelve games.</p>
<p id="B6iVul">Tuesday night was similarly close, with the Dodgers eking out a ninth win in 11 home games this season. They’ve allowed two or fewer runs in half of their 22 games overall.</p>
<p id="YVM9X3">Diminished fastball velocity has been the headliner in the early part of the season for Julio Urías, and it was down again on Tuesday <a href="https://baseballsavant.mlb.com/gamefeed?date=5/3/2022&gamePk=662708&chartType=pitch&legendType=pitchName&playerType=pitcher&inning=&count=&pitchHand=&batSide=&descFilter=&ptFilter=&resultFilter=&hf=playerBreakdown#662708">at 92.1 mph on average</a>, two ticks below last season. But just as large a concern for Urías was his command, walking eight batters in 18 April innings, an 11-percent walk rate that was more than double his 5.1-percent walk rate in 2021 that <a href="http://bbref.com/pi/shareit/sR20k">led the National League and ranked second in the majors</a>.</p>
<p id="x83BMA">Urías walked <em>nobody</em> on Tuesday, keeping San Francisco scoreless in six innings.</p>
<p id="efimQe">He pounded the zone in the series opener, throwing 80 percent of his 65 pitches for strikes, including starting 19 of his 21 batters with a strike. Urías <a href="http://bbref.com/pi/shareit/HxDXN">led MLB in strike percentage last year too</a>, but Tuesday was well above his 69.8-percent rate from last year.</p>
<p id="c7r01R">Urías <em>might</em> have given up a run in the first, with Mauricio Dubón having designs on an extra-base hit, but his 102-mph drive to right field was hauled in by a leaping grab from Mookie Betts.</p>
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<p lang="en" dir="ltr">MOOKIE! <a href="https://t.co/22vBScg9ds">pic.twitter.com/22vBScg9ds</a></p>— SportsNet LA (@SportsNetLA) <a href="https://twitter.com/SportsNetLA/status/1521675396743266309?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 4, 2022</a>
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<p id="peh4Of">Against the Giants in his career, Urías has a 2.41 ERA in 21 games, including 15 starts, with 82 strikeouts in 82 innings. Overall this season, Urías lowered his ERA to 1.88 through five starts.</p>
<p id="IXK7HK">Carlos Ródon was very much a handful in his own right, allowing only three hits in his six innings.</p>
<p id="oOMS81">Ródon only walked two in his outing, but both free passes came in the second inning. With two outs, he got ahead of Chris Taylor 0-2, then Ródon had a slider that slipped out of his hand, sailing over catcher Joey Bart’s head to the backstop putting both runners in scoring position.</p>
<p id="3P9wds">The next pitch was very much in the strike zone, and Taylor served the ball the other way for a two-run single. Taylor also doubled later against Ródon, but was stranded. </p>
<p id="B8gueU">In the sixth, Trea Turner doubled with one out against his old college roommate. This came after Ródon, the third pick in the 2014 <a href="https://www.sbnation.com/mlb-draft">MLB Draft</a> out of <a href="https://www.backingthepack.com/">NC State</a>, got Turner, the 13th pick that year, on a pair of one-pitch outs. It was the first time Turner and Ródon faced each other in the majors.</p>
<p id="opvbeE">San Francisco scratched across their run in the seventh with a single to third base and a walk off Brusdar Graterol. The only ball hit out of the infield that inning was Luis Gonzalez’s flyout to left field, a sacrifice fly against Alex Vesia, who otherwise escaped the jam.</p>
<p id="WZpE05">Daniel Hudson worked around a walk in the eighth to preserve a one-run advantage, and the Dodgers added an insurance run in the eighth. Craig Kimbrel, pitching in his third straight game spread over the last four days, threw a season-high 26 pitches and allowed the tying runs to reach base, but earned the save.</p>
<p id="fUEsE8">Kimbrel’s 377th career save moves him into a tie with Joe Nathan <a href="https://www.baseball-reference.com/leaders/SV_career.shtml">for eighth place on the all-time list</a>.</p>
<h3 id="6Tg3DS">Tuesday particulars</h3>
<p id="8nRJCM"><strong>Home runs</strong>: In <em>this</em> economy?</p>
<p id="UqP19A"><strong>WP — Julio Urías (2-1)</strong>: 6 IP, 4 hits, 4 strikeouts</p>
<p id="JsaO27"><strong>LP — Carlos Ródon (3-1)</strong>: 6 IP, 3 hits, 2 runs, 2 walks, 3 strikeouts</p>
<p id="dbxhc7"><strong>Sv — Craig Kimbrel (5)</strong>: 1 IP, 1 hit, 1 walk, 1 strikeout</p>
<h3 id="q1xBtS">Up next</h3>
<p id="6FLgfP">San Francisco will send another left-hander in the series finale, with old friend Alex Wood on the mound on Wednesday night (7:10 p.m., SportsNet LA). The Dodgers haven’t yet announced their starting pitcher for the series finale.</p>
https://www.truebluela.com/2022/5/3/23056314/dodgers-giants-julio-urias-chris-taylor-carlos-rodon-low-scoringEric Stephen2022-05-03T18:48:00-07:002022-05-03T18:48:00-07:00Dodgers vs. Giants Game I chat
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<img alt="Detroit Tigers defeated the Los Angeles Dodgers 5-1 during a MLB baseball game at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles." src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/vt11lYjc5kjenbr09g_b-Kvvag4=/0x0:7469x4979/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/70829407/1240365969.0.jpg" />
<figcaption>Photo by Keith Birmingham/MediaNews Group/Pasadena Star-News via Getty Images</figcaption>
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<p>It begins again</p> <p id="tfJljn">The <a href="https://www.truebluela.com/">Dodgers</a> and Giants meet for the first time in 2022 on Tuesday night at Dodger Stadium. Game one of 19 is a battle of southpaws, with Julio Urías facing Carlos Ródon.</p>
<p id="7aJv3A">Hanser Alberto gets a start at second base for the Dodgers, against the left-hander Ródon.</p>
<p id="2TX4OE">San Francisco called up infielder Kevin Padlo before the game, and will start him at third base. Mike Ford was optioned to Triple-A Sacramento. </p>
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<h3 id="uWm57d">Game info</h3>
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<li id="DNUFTs">Teams: Dodgers (14-7) vs. Giants (14-8)</li>
<li id="Z8MbaM">Pitchers: Julio Urías vs. Carlos Ródon</li>
<li id="e9IeCS">Location: Dodger Stadium</li>
<li id="AqZGR3">Time: 1:10 p.m.</li>
<li id="0vtISG">TV: SportsNet LA, TBS (out of market)</li>
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https://www.truebluela.com/2022/5/3/23055569/dodgers-giants-game-chatEric Stephen2022-05-02T13:11:00-07:002022-05-02T13:11:00-07:00Dodgers and Giants meet for the first time in 2022
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<img alt="MLB: NLDS-San Francisco Giants at Los Angeles Dodgers" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/HkFKBht3boGuTRsUt5iyQlv7Ilo=/0x0:2379x1586/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/70824002/usa_today_16943722.0.jpg" />
<figcaption>Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption>
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<p>2-game series starts Tuesday night at Dodger Stadium</p> <p id="VQxVPX">The <a href="https://www.truebluela.com/">Dodgers</a> and Giants were the two best teams in baseball last season, which culminated in the first-ever postseason matchup between the longtime rivals. Los Angeles and San Francisco are back at it again this week, with a brief two-game set at Dodger Stadium, their first meeting of the season.</p>
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<p id="oN2AWJ">This year, the Dodgers are on pace for 108 wins with the Giants on a 103-win pace. For now, they are separated by just a half-game, which sounds very familiar after the 2021 stretch run.</p>
<p id="vr06Du">San Francisco leads the majors in runs scored per game (4.95), with the Dodgers in second place (4.86), even if it hasn’t seemed so of late. </p>
<p id="6pJXYn">The Dodgers are on top in fewest runs allowed (2.62 runs per game), with the Giants seventh at 3.41.</p>
<p id="Q8WAf7">It’s a recipe for success for both teams, even though both lost a series to a last-place team in the last week. LA dropped two of three in Arizona, while the Giants lost two of three to the Nationals at home over the weekend.</p>
<p id="UIB73L">That San Francisco has scored so much is a testament to their depth, because they are missing several key players. Brandon Belt and Mike Yastrzemski are on the COVID-related injured list, and Tommy La Stella is out with right achilles inflammation.</p>
<p id="Cota4B">In addition, Giants relievers Dominic Leone and Zack Littell are both on the COVID-related IL. The Dodgers have a pair of pitchers on the COVID-related injured list as well, with neither David Price nor Mitch White expected back for this series.</p>
<p id="YY9Hlh">LaMonte Wade Jr. has been on the IL all season with left knee inflammation, but after a rehab assignment with Triple-A Sacramento he seems ready to return to the Giants lineup.</p>
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<p lang="en" dir="ltr">According to his Instagram, LaMonte Wade Jr. is in Los Angeles. So he either had a really rough travel day on the way back from the Triple-A trip or he’s going to make his season debut on Tuesday night at Dodger Stadium.</p>— Alex Pavlovic (@PavlovicNBCS) <a href="https://twitter.com/PavlovicNBCS/status/1520984350526885891?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 2, 2022</a>
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<p id="8Fpko3">Julio Urías starts on five days rest in the series opener on Tuesday night. Wednesday’s Dodgers starting pitcher is to be announced. With three off days in an eight-day stretch, that could be conducive to a bullpen game, depending on who pitches after Urías on Tuesday. Tony Gonsolin very well could start Wednesday, or he could have his next start pushed back to the road trip.</p>
<p id="RjKK4t">The Dodgers will have many chances this week to improve on their .223/.289/.348 mark and 90 wRC+ against left-handed pitchers this week, likely facing southpaw starters in four of their five games. Carlos Ródon has been amazing with a 1.17 ERA and 38 strikeouts in his first 23 innings (a 43-percent strikeout rate) with San Francisco, making his two-year, $44 million contract look like a potential bargain. He starts Tuesday night, followed by old friend Alex Wood on Wednesday.</p>
<p id="wNPQoq">Both games are 7:10 p.m. starts and will be televised locally by SportsNet LA. For folks out of market, TBS will also broadcast Tuesday night, with Bob Costas on play-by-play, Ron Darling as analyst, and Kelly Crull as reporter.</p>
https://www.truebluela.com/2022/5/2/23051078/dodgers-giants-series-preview-dodger-stadiumEric Stephen