The Los Angeles Dodgers had their season-best winning streak snapped at eight games and failed to put themselves in position to potentially clinch a postseason berth on Saturday.
Tyler Glasnow was provided an early lead but the Miami Marlins mounted a comeback to set the stage for a series rubber match on Sunday.
Marlins 4, Dodgers 3: key takeaways
Tyler Glasnow labors
Glasnow did not appear comfortable throughout the first inning as he continued to stretch and go into a crouch between pitches.
Glasnow gave up a two-out double, hit the next batter and then issued a walk to load the bases. He managed to escape the inning unscathed but needed 25 pitches to do so.
Miami took advantage of Glasnow’s continued command struggles in the second inning as a leadoff walk was followed by Graham Pauley hitting a game-tying home run. Glasnow nearly limited the damage but the Marlins strung together three singles in a row with two outs to take a 3-2 lead.
The right-hander then proceeded to retire seven batters in a row, which included five consecutive strikeouts. However, Glasnow’s troubles surfaced again in the bottom of the fifth and he was removed after issuing back-to-back walks. He was ultimately charged for a fourth run.
Saturday was a second consecutive start in which Glasnow was not sharp.
Mookie Betts part of Dodgers home run milestone
Mookie Betts and Max Muncy produced big swings for back-to-back home runs in the first inning. Betts’ homer was his 20th of the season and the 10,000th in L.A. Dodgers franchise history.
Unfortunately for the Dodgers, they didn’t have another hit until Alex Freeland’s two-out single in the seventh inning. At which point they were trailing 4-2 and ultimately fell short of overcoming the deficit.
Josue De Paula drew a walk with two outs in the ninth inning, took second base on defensive indifference and scored on Hunter Feduccia’s single. Will Smith pinch-hit as the go-ahead run but couldn’t keep the Dodgers’ rally alive.
Freddie Freeman returns
Freddie Freeman was back in the Dodgers lineup after missing two games in a row due to what he’s described as patellar tendinitis in his right knee. The lingering soreness has partly been blamed for Freeman’s recent skid at the plate, which continued as he went xx-for-xx.
Dodgers’ magic numbers
The Dodgers’ magic number to clinch the National League West is four due to holding the head-to-head tiebreaker over the San Diego Padres.
The Dodgers’ magic number for a guaranteed top two seed is 12. The Atlanta Braves own the tiebreaker against the Dodgers.
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