With a loss Monday night, the Los Angeles Dodgers fell to 3-5 against the San Francisco Giants. They look to get back in the win column against their National League West rival without Cody Bellinger and Corey Seager, among others, in the lineup.
That’s in response to the Giants starting left-hander Ty Blach. In 11 games (four starts) this season, Blach is 0-2 with a 4.88 ERA and 1.23 WHIP while striking out seven compared to eight walks in 27.2 innings.
He faced the Dodgers on April 25, allowing two runs on four hits, suffering the loss. After being called up to the Major last September, Blach faced the Dodgers twice in 2016, once in relief and once as a starter.
The 26-year-old threw a combined 11 shutout innings while allowing just three hits and issuing one walk.
The Dodgers also hand the ball to a lefty, in veteran Rich Hill. He was reinstated from the 10-day disabled list on Tuesday, in a roster move that saw Grant Dayton get optioned to Triple-A Oklahoma City.
Like last season, blisters have given Hill trouble. He’s made just two starts and spent the same number of stints on the disabled list in 2017.
Hill managed to pitch just three innings on April 16 before being removed because of the chronic blister on his left middle finger.
Hill has given up seven hits and three runs while striking out five and walking two in eight innings, good for a 3.38 ERA, 6.39 FIP and 1.50 WHIP. He was outstanding in his final rehab start, tossing five hitless innings for High-A Rancho Cucamonga.
In eight career starts against the Giants, Hill has found some success. He’s 3-2 with a 2.70 ERA and 1.12 WHIP. Brandon Crawford and Brandon Belt are both 3-for-6 off Hill, while Buster Posey is 4-for-8 and Eduardo Nuñez is 3-for-7 with a home run.
Yasmani Grandal has been on a tear as of late, hitting safely in nine consecutive games. He batted .457/.486/.686 with a home run and 10 RBIs over that span. However, it’s Austin Barnes who gets the start behind the plate.
Barnes has a modest five-game hitting streak of his own, going 6-for-12 in that span. With Bellinger not appearing in his first game since joining the Dodgers, it puts Franklin Gutierrez in left field.
He’s hitting .286/.375/.571 with three doubles, one home run and one RBI in 24 plate appearances against southpaws. Kiké Hernandez gets the start at shortstop for the fourth time this season but for the first time in his career is in the cleanup spot.
Dodgers lineup:
2B: Chris Taylor
LF: Franklin Gutierrez
3B: Justin Turner
SS: Kiké Hernandez
C: Austin Barnes
RF: Yasiel Puig
CF: Joc Pederson
1B: Scott Van Slyke
P: Rich Hill
Giants lineup:
CF: Denard Span
2B: Christian Arroyo
1B: Brandon Belt
C: Buster Posey
SS: Brandon Crawford
LF: Justin Ruggiano
3B: Eduardo Nuñez
RF: Mac Williamson
P: Ty Blach
