ESPN announced it will air a special Statcast-focused broadcast of the Los Angeles Dodgers’ series finale with the San Diego Padres this Sunday at 4 p.m. PT on ESPN2.
Jason Benetti will handle play-by-play duties for the broadcast and be joined by analyst Eduardo Perez and MLB.com Statcast Insider Mike Petriello. The trio will also host a Statcast-driven alternate presentation for Baseball Tonight on ESPN2, starting at 3:30 p.m. PT leading into the game telecast.
ESPN has offered several Statcast-focused alternate presentations over the past few years, including with its coverage of the 2020 MLB Wild Card Series.
Content for these types of broadcasts is pulled from Statcast, which features custom video and graphics as well as expert analysis and commentary.
The traditional Sunday Night Baseball telecast will air simultaneously on ESPN. Play-by-play commentator Matt Vasgersian will be on the call alongside analyst Alex Rodriguez and reporter Buster Olney.
The Dodgers were selected for only one ESPN Sunday Night Baseball Game broadcast during the first half of the season, but it’s conceivable they’ll make a few more appearances later in the year when the rest of the schedule is announced.
For the Padres, it marks their first appearance on Sunday Night Baseball since 2007. L.A. took two of three from San Diego during their first head-to-head series of the season last week at Petco Park.
Joe Musgrove did not pitch in the three-game set, but is slated to oppose Dustin May at Dodger Stadium on Sunday. Musgrove no-hit the Texas Rangers earlier this month and is coming off a 13-strikeout performance against the Milwaukee Brewers.
May also did not appear in the three-game series at Petco Park last week, but similarly has jumped out to a solid start this season. In 15.1 innings of work, he has posted a 2.93 ERA, 2.89 FIP and 1.11 WHIP with 22 strikeouts against four walks across three games.
Padres’ Yu Darvish: Dodgers best team ‘in the world’
After winning their first series of the season against the Padres, Yu Darvish offered high praise for the Dodgers, deeming them the best team in baseball.
The right-hander took a hard-luck loss in the middle game of the matchup, allowing just one run and one hit over seven innings pitched with nine strikeouts.
Darvish turned in another strong effort against his former team in a rematch with Clayton Kershaw that went in the Padres’ favor.
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