Kike Hernandez and Chris Taylor went yard and Dodgers’ right-hander
Kenta Maeda posted nine strike outs last night in a 2-1 win over the Cubs at
Chavez Ravine, pulling Los Angeles to within 1.5 games of first place Arizona.
The Dodgers are having a breakout month of June, posting a
16-5 record with five games left to play in the month.
Matt Kemp, headed for the All-Star game, and the likes of
Cody Bellinger, Joc Pederson, Hernandez, Taylor, Max Muncy and Yasiel Puig have
heated up in June, leading the Dodgers to the most home runs in the National
League. And then there’s Justin Turner, who missed 40 games with a wrist
injury. He’s back and starting to find his stroke.
But they say it always comes down to pitching – and that’s
where Los Angeles is starting to restock the shelves. After having the entire
rotation on the DL, Clayton Kershaw, Maeda and Rich Hill have returned to the
mound and the once generous LA bullpen has jelled, giving the Dodgers a
formidable roster.
With Walker Buehler and Hyun Jin-Ryu still on the DL, the
Dodgers are not yet back to full strength. Manager Dave Roberts has options. Ross
Stripling (6-2, 1.99 ERA) is having his best season and Alex Wood and rookie
Caleb Ferguson have had decent outings as of late.
Roberts could go into the second half with a rotation of
Kershaw, Stripling, Maeda, Hill and Wood with Buehler, Ryu and Ferguson getting
spot starts. Before getting a rib injury, Buehler was looking like the real deal.
If the rookie comes back healthy he may force Wood or Hill out of the rotation.
It’s the bullpen that has made the most dramatic turnaround.
Edward Paredes, Erik Goeddel, Josh Fields, Scott Alexander, Daniel Hudson, Tony
Cingrani and Yimi Garcia are getting most of the work to get to closer Kenley
Jansen.
During the sizzling month of June, the LA pen has been
stellar in shutting down opposing offenses. The Dodgers have 14 pitchers,
including starters, with ERAs under 4.0.
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