One night removed from allowing two runs amid continued struggles, Tanner Scott found himself in the same position as he entered from the bullpen.
The Los Angeles Dodgers had again put together a rally in the ninth inning, and Scott was coming in to pitch against the New York Mets in extras. On Monday night, he gave up back-to-back hits that allowed the Mets to take their decided lead.
It was the latest appearance of subpar stretch that saw Scott take two losses and blow three save opportunities in his last seven appearances. Scott has allowed 12 runs across six innings pitched, and opponents hit .419 during that span.
Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said after the game he remained confident in the left-hander and wouldn’t hesitate to use him in a high-leverage situation in the days to come.
Scott rewarded his manager’s trust as he struck out Juan Soto and Pete Alonso en route to retiring the side in order Tuesday night. Freddie Freeman then delivered a walk-off RBI double to help the Dodgers snap a two-game losing streak.
“Me, Connor (McGuiness), Bardo (Josh Bard) and Mark (Prior) did a deep dive, and I definitely had to clean some things up. It’s a process,” Scott said after the win. “And still, tomorrow’s a new day, and go back right to it.”
Scott specified mechanical adjustments he made had to do with the lower half of his body opening too wide, which in turn impacted his delivery and prevented him from “staying through” pitches. That also impacted pitch location and could explain the abundance of fastballs Scott was leaving over the heart of the plate.
“It’s something you keep working through,” he said. “Tomorrow’s a new game of catch, and just go right back to it. Keep working.”
Connor McGuiness Tanner Scott
Whether with Scott or other players on the roster, Roberts has shown throughout his managerial career that he will maintain confidence even in the face of prolonged struggles. And with Scott specifically, Roberts highlighted Dodgers assistant pitching coach Connor McGuiness.
“I think that I’ve shown that I’m going to continue to stick with guys and trust in them, believe in them, as long as they’re doing their part, their work, and they’re not losing confidence in themselves and their ability,” Roberts said after the Dodgers’ walk-off win.
“He takes really good care of himself. And I think in this particular instance, Connor McGuiness and Mark Prior did a great job with some things that we kind of cleaned up mechanically, that he really took to and you saw tonight that the fastball had a lot more life.
“The slider, there was swing and miss to it, which we haven’t really seen consistently. So Connor certainly deserves a lot of credit for that.”
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