Emmet Sheehan turned in his shortest start of the season as the Los Angeles Dodgers were blown out by the Los Angeles Angels in the Freeway Series finale at Dodger Stadium.
Sheehan recorded only four outs before he was removed in the top of the second inning by manager Dave Roberts. The right-hander threw 35 pitches in the frame, which was largely due to Nick Madrigal drawing a 14-pitch walk.
That was followed by Jose Siri working a seven-pitch free pass to load the bases. The at-bat was extended after home-plate umpire Dan Iassogna missed Dalton Rushing catching a foul tip that would have amounted to a strikeout.
Rushing and the Dodgers wanted to challenge the play, but it was not reviewable under MLB replay rules.
“Didn’t get an explanation,” Roberts said after the game. “It should be reviewable. We got the hit-by-pitch reviewed. Initially, when it was implemented, it wasn’t.
“I just think that changed the game. The Madgrial check swing, I felt he went. Those are things that could impact the game. I know they’re talking about replay with the check-swing, too. Those are things that did impact the game.”
As Roberts pointed out, Madrigal appeared to strike out on a check swing that was called a ball. But like the foul tip, it was not challengeable under MLB’s current replay system.
The non-calls proved costly as Sebastián Rivero promptly lined a two-run single to center field that gave the Angels an early lead. It was the start of a career day at the plate for the backup catcher, who finished 5-for-5 with six RBI.
Angels make history against Dodgers
The Angels avoided being swept by the Dodgers thanks to the contributions from the bottom of their lineup. Jo Adell, Madrigal, Siri and Rivero — the team’s Nos. 6 through 9 hitters — went a combined 13-for-15 with four walks, 10 runs scored and 10 RBI.
Madrigal accounted for three of those walks, including his back-breaking free pass against Sheehan.
“It had a huge impact,” Roberts said of Madrigal’s plate discipline after the Dodgers’ 13-5 loss. “He walked three times today, huge impact. That bottom half, they were fouling off a lot of balls. We couldn’t put those guys away. Six through nine, I don’t think we got those guys out. The Madrigal at-bats really were the difference today.”
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