With the Los Angeles Dodgers looking to rebound from a deflating loss to the Chicago Cubs, they handed the ball to rookie Julio Urias in another spot start. It was Urias’ second time facing the Cubs this season.
He was a victim of soft contact during the June 2 start at Wrigley Field, and the Cubs were also sure to punish mistake pitches — clubbing a trio of home runs off the young southpaw. Urias allowed six runs (five earned) on eight hits over five innings of work.
His start on Saturday also got off to an ominous start as the first three batters of the game all reached. Dexter Fowler drew a leadoff walk and went first to third base on Kris Bryant’s flare single.
Anthony Rizzo followed with an RBI single to right field, giving the Cubs a 1-0 lead. The first out came on Ben Zobrist’s sacrifice bunt.
Urias managed to limit the damage to just one run by striking out Addison Russell and Jorge Soler. However, he threw 31 pitches in the opening frame.
But rather than come undone after the first inning, Urias settled in and worked his way through five subsequent scoreless innings with the poise you’d expect from a veteran.
Urias worked around multiple base hits and a walk en route to matching career highs with eight strikeouts and six innings. Video highlights of his quality start provided via the Dodgers’ Twitter account:
Another solid start for the kid. ?https://t.co/wv323df4xD
— Los Angeles Dodgers (@Dodgers) August 28, 2016
Urias completed six innings a second consecutive start, though doing so Saturday was certainly more impressive than the start against the Cincinnati Reds.
