The Los Angeles Dodgers began their nine-game road trip by taking advantage of hitter-friendly Great American Ball Park to complete a season series sweep of the Cincinnati Reds.
During the three games they scored at least eight runs in each contest, produced their first sacrifice bunt of the season, advanced runners in situational at-bats and continued to slug. Manager Dave Roberts said after the sweep he believed the Dodgers had their best series offensively.
However, since then the Dodgers lineup has struggled to generate much consistency en route to going just 2-2 in the last four games. L.A. hit the skids Monday night in a 4-0 loss as Chad Kuhl threw a complete game.
It marked the first time the Dodgers had a complete-game shutout thrown against them at Coors Field. Following the loss, Roberts dismissed the notion that the Dodgers lineup has taken a step backward since series against the Reds, via SportsNet LA
“No, no. I don’t think so. I don’t recall exactly how many runs we scored in that Atlanta series, but I thought we ran into some good arms. I thought the at-bats all series long were good. Tonight is probably one of those nights we’d like to have back, but the six games prior, I thought the intent, our at-bat quality was good up and down.”
Even with some of the ongoing struggles, the Dodgers’ 115 wRC+ trails only the New York Yankees for best mark in baseball. Their .331 on-base percentage as a team is tops overall.
To Roberts’ point, the Dodgers faced Max Fried and Spencer Strider during the series with the Atlanta Braves. Both were effective, but the Dodgers withstood Strider’s outing to rally late and get a win in extra innings for the first time this season.
Dodgers still waiting on Mookie Betts
While Trea Turner has excelled since moving into the leadoff spot while Mookie Betts is on the 10-day injured list, the Dodgers had hoped the 2018 American League MVP would make a rather quick return from a fractured rib.
However, the initial timetable of two weeks from June 19 no longer is considered feasible as Betts has yet to resume baseball activities.
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