The Los Angeles Dodgers dropped the second game of their series against the San Diego Padres in a blowout 11-1 loss on Tuesday, setting up a rubber match after they were victorious in extra innings during the opener at Petco Park.
After Lou Trivino opened with a scoreless inning, Matt Sauer took over, and things quickly started to fall apart. By the end of his appearance, Sauer had thrown 111 pitches while allowing nine runs on 13 hits in 4.2 innings.
It was the most pitches a Dodgers pitcher has thrown in a game since Lance Lynn as the club has generally protects their arms and avoids overworking them. But Dodgers manager Dave Roberts made the decision to let Sauer remain in the game in order to set the team up moving forward and avoid using the bullpen in a likely loss.
“That was kind of the thought once we got behind early,” Roberts said. “You’ve just got to look at where our ‘pen is at, appreciating what we have the next couple days, I felt it wasn’t smart to chase and redline guys in the ‘pen.
“I’ve got to give credit to Matt, who pitched as much as he’s ever pitched. He essentially took it for the team to try and stay away from other guys and give us a good chance to win a series. That’s what we came in here to do, and we’re in position to do that.”
After Sauer exited with runners on in the sixth, Kiké Hernández took over, further signifying the Dodgers were punting the game once they fell behind. It was the earliest a position player has entered a game in recent memory, and it wasn’t an ideal situation for Roberts, but one he felt was the best decision to make.
“Very awkward, very awkward,” Roberts said. “It doesn’t feel good, but I think a guy that was available tonight in Kopech, I’m not going to pitch him, down six or seven in the sixth inning, to then not have him available tomorrow.
“As the rules are, we abided, and that’s kind of what you do to essentially move forward and win the ensuing games.”
The Dodgers’ pitching has been an issue for some time now due to all their injuries. They have 14 pitchers on the injured list, and another not available when including Shohei Ohtani.
But even with their lack of arms, the Dodgers remain in first place in the National League West with a chance to win the series against the Padres, which is their primary goal right now.
“We have a chance to win the series, so I like our chances a lot tomorrow,” Roberts said. “Today was one of those games you’ve got read and react. Yeah, it’s where our staff is at right now as far as who’s available, who’s not, who we can kind of push, who we can’t.
“These are the starters we have, so we’ve got to go with it and make the best. Again, the goal was to come in here and win a series, and we’ve got a really good chance to do that tomorrow.”
Dodgers pitching having historic struggles during Dave Roberts’ tenure
With that blowout defeat at Petco Park, the Dodgers have now lost three games this season by at least 10 runs. According to research by ESPN Stats and Info, that’s the most double-digit losses the Dodgers have had in a single season since Roberts was hired as manager in 2016.
Their other such lopsided losses this year came in a 16-0 defeat to the Chicago Cubs at Dodger Stadium on April 12, and when they fell 11-1 to the Athletics on May 13 in a home game as well.
In addition to losing by at least 10 runs in those three games, another common thread they share is featuring a Dodgers position player pitching. Miguel Rojas and Hernández have both helped fill innings for the team, a trend they hope to avoid moving forward.
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