Coming off their first off day in more than two weeks, the Los Angeles Dodgers hit the road for the start of a three-game matchup against the San Francisco Giants at Oracle Park.
The Dodgers concluded the first half of the regular season with the best record in Major League Baseball at 22-8. The club has won 11 of their 12 games dating back to Aug. 12, and on the year, own a 4-3 record against the Giants.
Julio Urias makes his sixth start of the season. He enters with a 2-0 record, 2.74 ERA, 3.61 FIP and 1.26 WHIP in 23 innings pitched.
Urias looks to bounce back after lasting just 1.2 innings in his most recent outing against the Seattle Mariners. He allowed one run on four hits with five strikeouts and two walks.
Urias has found success against the Giants this season, allowing eight hits and two runs in nine combined innings across two starts.
San Francisco counters with Johnny Cueto, who could potentially be making his final start for the organization. The right-hander’s name has surfaced in rumors ahead of next week’s Aug. 31 trade deadline.
In six starts this season, Cueto has posted a 2-0 record, 4.35 ERA, 4.00 FIP and 1.13 WHIP with 27 strikeouts against 12 walks over 31 innings pitched.
He has faced the Dodgers twice this season — the first on Opening Day and his most recent outing earlier this month. In those two starts, he went 1-1, yielding a combined seven hits and five runs across 9.2 innings.
Dodgers manager Dave Roberts emphasized getting men on base to prevent Cueto from using his array of delivers. “I know it’s easier said than done,” Roberts said.
Prior to traveling for the start of the road trip, he also expressed concerns about the air quality in San Francisco. “For all of us, just following the lead of people that know more than we do. Hopefully, safety should be at the forefront,” he said of the hundreds of wildfires impacting the Bay Area.
“I have read and heard about it. I know one of the days we’re going to try to stay off the field as much as possible but you’re still going to play a three-hour baseball game. We’re going to continue to move forward business as usual unless we hear otherwise.”
Returning to the lineup for the Dodgers is Justin Turner, who missed Sunday’s game due to a minor hamstring issue. He is slashing .343/.395/.600 with a pair of home runs in 35 career at-bats against Cueto.
Dodgers lineup:
RF: Mookie Betts
SS: Corey Seager
3B: Justin Turner
CF: Cody Bellinger
1B: Max Muncy
DH: AJ Pollock
LF: Joc Pederson
2B: Kiké Hernandez
C: Will Smith
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