After edging the Washington Nationals in Game 1 of the National League Division Series, the Los Angeles Dodgers were in strong position to take a commanding 2-0 series lead. Rich Hill’s array of breaking balls figured to give the Nationals, who struggled hitting curveball, fits.
Just as Clayton Kershaw was in the series opener, Hill was spotted a 1-0 lead behind a Corey Seager home run in the first inning. Further reminiscent of Game 1, Hill struck out the side in the bottom half of the opening frame.
The second inning wasn’t as smooth for Hill, who allowed a base hit, issued a walk, and hit Danny Espinosa to load the bases. But the veteran southpaw escaped the jam unscathed.
After the Dodgers added one run to their lead, Hill allowed a one-out base hit in the bottom of the third but otherwise struck out the side.
He unraveled a bit in the fourth, walking Daniel Murphy, and hitting Espinosa for the second time. Jose Lobaton then crushed a hanging curveball for a three-run home run.
Hill allowed a fourth run prior to being removed with one out in the fifth inning. The Dodgers went on to lose, 5-2, allowing the Nationals to pull even in the best-of-five NLDS.
Hill expressed frustration over his performance and put the game squarely on his shoulders, via AJ Cassavell of MLB.com:
“I’m disappointed, really disappointed,” Hill said. “I thought that game was going to play well for me, personally, to put us in a good position to win, and I didn’t execute. It falls solely on me.”
“I believe we’re tied in this series now because I didn’t execute,” Hill said. “For me, it’s extremely disappointing. But the good news is we’re going home [with] home-field advantage.”
Hill’s 4.1 innings pitched was good for his shortest outing since being traded to the Dodgers. While he inexplicably hit a struggling Espinosa prior to allowing the go-ahead home run, fact of the matter is Hill was let down by the offense.
The Dodgers loaded the bases on three separate occasions, only to never come up with a needed hit. Los Angeles left 12 runners on base and finished 1-for-9 with runners in scoring position.
Hill’s comments on Sunday marked the second time he’s taken blame for a tough-luck loss. The previous instance was Sept. 20 against the San Francisco Giants when he allowed one run — on a wall-scrapping solo homer to Eduardo Nunez in the fifth inning — of a Dodgers’ 2-0 loss.
