The Los Angeles Dodgers are in the midst of an important week with series against two postseason contenders in the Baltimore Orioles and Arizona Diamondbacks.
The Dodgers dropped their first game against the Orioles on Tuesday and consequently lost some ground in a tight National League West race, but bounced back with a win and now look to take the series Thursday.
To follow is a visit to Chase Field for a four-game series against the Diamondbacks.
“I still think we’re in playoff mode,” manager Dave Roberts said of the Dodgers’ current stretch.
“I think Brandon (Hyde) has done a great job over there with those guys. It’s a fun, young group, athletic. They can pitch, they can hit, they catch it. I’m excited to see them. It’s going to be a playoff environment, and certainly going back and playing the Diamondbacks, we’ve played those guys pretty even all year.
“They’re playing the best baseball since the break. We got four there. I feel like we’re in a good spot, position player-wise, pitching-wise. But it’s going to be exciting. We’re going to play good baseball.”
Roberts believes the Dodgers will benefit from the high-intensity games before October.
“It’s good, yeah, I think so,” he said.
“We saw some really good pitching with the Mariners, obviously, and these guys can really play baseball. I love their their position players. They match up. And Burnes is one of the leaders in the Cy Young in the American League, we’ve seen a lot of him.
“And you can see it, the Orioles fans, they travel well, so that’s been fun. You can see the energy even on a Tuesday night.”
This week’s matchup between the Dodgers and Orioles represents a potential World Series preview as both teams are separated by just 2.5 games for the best record in baseball.
Teoscar Hernández: Dodgers ‘not thinking about the future’
The Dodgers’ upcoming series against the Diamondbacks could have major implications on the NL West race, but that isn’t a focal point for Teoscar Hernández.
“We’re not thinking about the future. We’re just going to think about every game, not going ahead of things.” Hernández said of this weekend’s matchup.
“Like I said, we just got to think game by game and try to win.”
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