After the Los Angeles Dodgers defeated the Colorado Rockies in back-to-back walk-off wins at Dodger Stadium, manager Bud Black found a silver lining in his club remaining competitive against the National League West leader.
Having already made MLB history, the Dodgers added to their record the following afternoon when Will Smith delivered a walk-off home run. The Dodgers improved to 6-0 against the Rockies this season and had an 11-game winning streak that dated back to last year.
L.A. won a 12th consecutive head-to-head matchup before suffering two straight losses at Coors Field. They rebounded on Sunday for a 10-5 victory to salvage the weekend with a series split.
Despite uncharacteristically sloppy defense throughout the weekend and some of his starters and bullpen faltering, Dodgers manager Dave Roberts was pleased with clawing out two wins, per Jorge Castillo of the L.A. Times:
“For us to come out of here with a split and not lose no ground to those guys who gave it all they had, is a good thing for us,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said.
Even as the Dodgers were suddenly struggling to play clean games defensively, Roberts maintained confidence they were in strong position to persevere. He cited the Dodgers’ work ethic and consistent attention to detail.
With their latest win, the Dodgers went into Monday’s off day with a 12-game lead on the Rockies in the NL West standings. Though, they now are just one game ahead of the New York Yankees for the best record in baseball.
L.A. can take solace in going 12-6 over a stretch in which they played 18 games in as many days. They begin a six-game homestand Tuesday that will take them into the All-Star break. At worst, the Dodgers should reach that point with at least the best record in the NL.
With David Freese potentially returning this week, the unofficial second half of 2019 should see the Dodgers activate both A.J. Pollock and Corey Seager off the 10-day injured list.
