The Los Angeles Dodgers made noise prior to the non-waiver trade deadline on Monday when they acquired left-handed pitcher Rich Hill and right fielder Josh Reddick from the Oakland Athletics.
Los Angeles also generated plenty of headlines for their decision to either trade Yasiel Puig or demote him. The Dodgers were unable to complete a deal for Puig, and on Tuesday sent him to the Minors while activating Reddick and another newly acquired player in relief pitcher Jesse Chavez.
Reddick starts in right field and hits cleanup in his Dodgers debut. The 29-year-old is batting
.296/.368/.449 with eight home runs and 28 RBIs in 68 games this season. He has a .955 on-base plus slugging percentage and all of his 21 extra-base hits against right-handers.
Reddick and the Dodgers face Jon Gray in the opener of a three-game series against the Colorado Rockies. Gray enters 7-4 with a 3.94 ERA, 3.80 FIP, 1.15 WHIP, 114 strikeouts and 35 walks over 109.2 innings pitched.
In eight home starts this year he is 4-0 with a 4.22 ERA. Gray has yet to beat the Dodgers in his brief career, going 0-2 with a 5.74 ERA in three starts. His last outing against Los Angeles came at Dodger Stadium on July 3 when he gave up six hits and three runs in six innings in a losing effort.
The Dodgers counter with Brandon McCarthy, who has enjoyed a successful return from Tommy John surgery. In five starts the right-hander is 2-1 with a 2.39 ERA, 2.64 FIP and 0.84 WHIP. More impressively, McCarthy has a 33.3 percent strikeout rate over 26.1 innings.
He owns a 0.73 ERA in two starts thus far in 2016. Tuesday’s game is another matchup between the pair of right-handers. McCarthy made his season debut in the July 3 meeting, throwing five shutout innings with eight strikeouts.
Corey Seager is 5-for-6 with one home run against Gray in his career. Adrian Gonzalez is a lifetime 4-for-9, also with a home run off the righty. Dodgers manager Dave Roberts has six left-handed batters in Tuesday’s lineup.
Colorado is 12-5 since the All-Star break but lost shortstop Trevor Story to a thumb injury that will require season-ending surgery.
Dodgers lineup:
2B: Chase Utley
SS: Corey Seager
3B: Justin Turner
RF: Josh Reddick
1B: Adrian Gonzalez
C: Yasmani Grandal
CF: Joc Pederson
LF: Howie Kendrick
P: Brandon McCarthy
Rockies lineup:
CF: Charlie Blackmon
2B: D.J. Lemahieu
RF: Carlos Gonzalez
3B: Nolan Arenado
LF: David Dahl
1B: Mark Reynolds
SS: Daniel Descalso
C: Nick Hundley
P: Jon Gray
