The Los Angeles Dodgers began their six-game road trip on Tuesday with a dud of a performance against the Atlanta Braves at Turner Field. Alex Wood’s first start in Atlanta since being traded last season was a nightmarish outing.
Wood threw 88 pitches over four innings, allowing seven hits, six runs (three earned) and issuing three walks. He was let down a bit by the defense behind him, as the Dodgers committed two errors while Wood was in the game. Turner was charged with his second error of the game in the seventh inning.
While the Dodgers went on to win the next two games, they committed one error in each win. Atlanta had two miscues on Wednesday and three more Thursday.
The law of averages may suggest both clubs experienced the ebbs and flows of a 162-game regular season, however other factors may have been at play. According to ESPN’s Doug Padilla, Braves players are considering taking action over the poor quality of the infield at Turner Field:
Unhappy over the conditions of the Turner Field infield, Atlanta Braves players are considering contacting the players’ union to see if they can pressure their own club to make improvements, a source within the organization told ESPN on Thursday.
Dodgers manager Dave Roberts did acknowledge the playing conditions weren’t the same as Dodger Stadium:
“This is a tough infield,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said. “You look at Dodger Stadium versus this field, and this field, the guys talk about it around the league that it is not the best infield as far as playing.”
Yasmani Grandal also noticed the suboptimal conditions, but put the onus on the Dodgers to press forward:
“We talked about it,” Grandal said after a long pause. “Behind home plate, I felt it was very soft. But then again, it’s not our home field. It all depends on how the infielders like it here. We just have to adjust to every playing field we go to and make plays. Obviously it was a little hard for us the last two days, making a couple of errors, but that’s all right.”
The Dodgers have committed nine errors on the season entering play Friday at Coors Field; five of which came during the series against the Braves.
