On the heels of a frustrating 5-4 loss, the Los Angeles Dodgers look to bounce back with a more complete effort in the second matchup of a three-game series against the San Francisco Giants at Dodger Stadium.
Nearing a seventh straight National League West title, the Dodgers can reduce their magic number to three with a win on Saturday. They can officially clinch the division as early as Monday, though that is contingent on how the Arizona Diamondbacks fare in their next two games.
The Giants, on the other hand, are in the midst of another disappointing season. They enter with a 68-73 record in what is manager Bruce Bochy’s final month at the position. He was honored by the Dodgers prior to Friday’s opener.
Looking for continued success is Tony Gonsolin, who enjoyed an excellent showing in August. Making four starts, he compiled a 2-0 record, 1.80 ERA and 0.90 WHIP with 16 strikeouts against six walks in 20 innings of work.
Gonsolin overall enters with a 2-1 mark, 2.89 ERA, 3.68 FIP and 0.96 WHIP in 28 innings pitched. In his brief time with the Dodgers, he has held opposing batters to a superb .200/.241/.362 batting line.
Saturday marks Gonsolin’s first career appearance against the Giants. In two starts at Chavez Ravine this season, he has allowed just one run on four hits with nine strikeouts across 11 innings pitched.
“His build-up is good, we have a lot of confidence in him taking the mound tonight and I expect good things,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said of Gonsolin.
San Francisco counters with Tyler Beede, who is in the midst of a disappointing rookie campaign. He has accumulated a 3-9 record with a 5.61 ERA, 5.43 FIP and 1.59 WHIP in 96.1 innings pitched (20 games, 18 starts).
The 26-year-old has been better of late, however, yielding three runs or less in each of his three most recent starts. Though, he has pitched into the fifth inning just once during the span.
In his lone outing against the Dodgers this season back on June 17, Beede enjoyed what was arguably one of his best performances all year, allowing just one run on three hits over six innings of work. The Giants pulled out a 3-2 victory behind his efforts.
Dodgers lineup:
RF: Joc Pederson
SS: Corey Seager
3B: Justin Turner
1B: Cody Bellinger
LF: A.J. Pollock
2B: Gavin Lux
CF: Kiké Hernandez
C: Will Smith
P: Tony Gonsolin
Giants lineup:
LF: Mike Yastrzemski
1B: Brandon Belt
3B: Evan Longoria
C: Stephen Vogt
CF: Kevin Pillar
SS: Brandon Crawford
RF: Austin Slater
2B: Mauricio Dubon
P: Tyler Beede
