Aug 13-15: Dodgers visit Mets for 1st time in 2 years. Dodgers need a series win.
Game 1- Dodgers sailing along behind Urias with a 4-0 lead after 5. Roberts pulls Urias (looking tired) and Knebel holds the 6th. But the Dodgers implode with a give-away in the 7th: after 2 outs (both K’s), Roberts 1st mistake was to pull Graterol, and then replace him with a rookie (our recipe for disaster all year). Roberts waited too long to bring in Treinen to shut it down, but not after giving up 4 runs to tie the game and rob Urias of a well deserved 14th win.
Then Freaky Friday the 13th came to haunt further in the 9th. Pujols is called back as PH for Barnes to sac bunt, but he pops out. But a balk is called, so the runner advances to 2B anyway. Then Trea gets HBP but gets called back after review (hit the bat). Trea takes strike 3 (oh no), leaving it to Muncy. Max then gets “green lighted” (fan shines a green light onto his face!). But Mighty Max swings — and misses to end the inning (ugh!). Jansen comes in and pitches a clean 9th, striking out Alonso (you can breath now, but I would have walked Pete). So we go to extras — and to our Dodger doom.
But wait — Freaky Friday the 13th turns as Will Smith leads off the 10th by opening his stance and turning on a fastball tailing in on him for a long home run! Dodgers in unknown territory take a 6-4 lead. Kenley is sent out for a 2nd inning to save it. Hold your breath again. Roberts intentionally walks the winning run (dangerous) but fortunately it works this time, as the next batter flies out to end the game 6-5. Smitty the hero, with a nice effort from Jansen.
Game 2- Stop the presses: Dodgers win back to back extra innings games! This time only 2-1, with both teams garnering only 4 hits, including a solo jack. Unlike last night, this game was a sleeper, as the Dodgers were no hit through 6. Hero Will Smith got our first hit — a solo jack — in the 7th, to tie the game 1-1. Our bullpen no hit the Mets over the final 3 innings for the save, following Buehler’s great 7 (1 run, 4 hits, 10 K). But I (not Doc) would have let Bickford finish the game. my god, he got the 1st 2 in the 10th, looking sharp. Then Roberts pulls him? With only 1 more out to get? Pshaw! Final point: why was Roberts making so many 2-for-1 pitching changes? He was shuffling players in and out and all over the field — that leads to errors (silly). And that really helped our offense, right? Not. IMHO, way over managing.
Game 3- For the sweep. After being no-hit for 6 last night, Dodgers unload on Mets starting early rolling 3’s: 3x3x3x3x2 = 14 for two touchdowns (14-16-1). Poor Mets didn’t know what hit ’em, with a barrage of 5 homeruns, including 2 by Muncy, and a PH jack by Beaty. Trea set the tone with 3 for 3 to start, then JT and Smith went nearly back to back in the 1st, with Muncy going yard for another 3 spot in the 2nd. Dodgers rolled another pair of 3’s in the 6-7th to put it away for good.
Pitching: Scherzer was strong again, but was let down by a lot of sloppy Dodgers’ defense. First, Smith picked up a dribbler and threw to 3B too late instead of the sure out at 1B. Then Trea dropped a DP throw to make both runners safe, and later botched a grounder. Followed by Seager getting befuddled and not taking the sure out on a bouncer. So instead of 2 easy innings, Scherzer had to grind out it out throwing an extra 10-15 pitches. Given the weary bullpen, Roberts should have let Scherzer pitch the 7th. But instead he pulled him for yet another newly called up Nieto who was awful, and had to go. It was dicey replacing him with yet another sketchy reliever, Uceta, with bases loaded and 1 out. And expected, Uceta gave up a long fly that could have cut the lead to 9-7, but thankfully fell just short of the warning track. But that did make it 9-4. Fortunately, the Dodgers put up 5 more runs to make all that moot at 14-4. Fun watching the Mets go with a pair of position players to pitch the 9th, and the Dodgers feasted for 2 more runs.