The offense that helped carry the Los Angeles Dodgers to a five-game winning streak was nonexistent against Robbie Ray and the Arizona Diamondbacks on Thursday night. Manny Machado’s solo home run in the sixth inning was all Los Angeles mustered in their 3-1 loss.
Despite only scoring one run, the Dodgers certainly had their share of opportunities. They patiently worked the count against Ray in the first inning, leading to Justin Turner and Machado both drawing a walk.
But Matt Kemp and Kiké Hernandez lacked the same discipline, and Ray picked up back-to-back strikeouts to end the inning. He finished with nine strikeouts over 5.1 innings pitched, and the Diamondbacks staff as a whole collected 15 on the night.
Brian Dozier felt Ray and the Diamondbacks relievers deserved some credit for that, but he also put the onus on the Dodgers to improve, as seen on SportsNet LA:
“Sometimes you have to tip your cap. He threw the ball really well, but at the same time, certain situations we have to bear down a little bit extra. You can tip your cap all you want but at the same time, it’s time to bear down a little bit.”
Batting leadoff, Dozier went 1-for-4 with his only strikeout coming in the bottom of the fifth when Ray punched out the side. That arguably was part of a momentum swing as the Diamondbacks had just taken a 3-0 lead on David Peralta’s home run in the top half of the inning.
In addition to their 15 strikeouts, the Dodgers hit into three double plays. Though, one was bad luck as Cody Bellinger ripped a line drive right at Paul Goldschmidt who then stepped on first base to end the sixth.
Los Angeles finished 0-for-5 with runners in scoring position and stranded six overall. Machado was the only player in the lineup to not strike out, while Chris Taylor went 0-for-4 with four strikeouts.
