A 2-0 lead, sixth inning, ace pitcher on the mound. A perfect recipe for stopping a losing streak, right?
Nope.
Paul Goldschmidt's two-run homer off of Clayton Kershaw tied it in the sixth, and his solo shot in the eighth off of Kenley Jansen was the game winner as the Diamondbacks got the win and the sweep, 3-2. At 13-20, the Dodgers are in dead ass last in the NL West. Exactly where they belong.
The game was scoreless until the fourth. Dee Gordon led off and singled, and he quickly scored on Nick Punto's RBI double. Matt Kemp flew out, mostly because you can't possibly expect him to hit a homer in this spot. Or, hit anything in this spot. Adrian Gonzalez picked him up with an RBI double, and it was 2-0.
I would also like to point out that Juan Uribe stranded two in the same inning by flying out. That pretty much sums up just how sad and desperate the Dodgers are for offense, that they have to use that guy as a starter. Pathetic.
Kershaw was rolling until the sixth. Didi Gregorious reached leading off on an error by Gordon. No surprise there at all, as Gordon might be the worst defensive shortstop in baseball. It's not like he doesn't make good plays, but you definitely have to take the bad with the good when it comes to him. And wouldn't you know it, Goldschmidt deposited a two-run shot to left to make it 2-2.
Jansen took over for Kershaw in the eighth after 104 pitches. That worked out at first as A.J. Pollack and Gregorious were set down, but on a 3-2 pitch, Goldschmidt launched his second homer of the night, and it was 3-2.
The Dodgers actually had a great chance to at least tie the game in the ninth when Skip Schumaker pinch-hit and doubled against Heath Bell leading off. But in true 2013 Dodger fashion, the next three did absolutely jack squat with it. AJ Ellis grounded out, Andre Ethier struck out, and Carl Crawford flew out to end it. Typical.
On one hand, you can say that Kershaw wasn't at his best, as he only struck out four over seven innings. But then you see that he only gave up five hits, one earned run, and one walk, and you go back to feeling sorry for him. That's got to be tough knowing that no matter how many times you take the hill, you have to be practically flawless just to get a win. He has three wins this year, and deserves at least three more. That's life with the Dodgers.
During the seven-game skid, they've scored over three runs only once. That would be the 10-9 game they lost to the Giants last Saturday, which was an absolute joke. In the other games they've scored 3, 1, 3, 2, 3, and 2 runs. Speaking of an absolute joke, there's another one. Same old song and dance.
Gordon hit leadoff and went 2-for-4 with a run, but was also picked off of first and committed that huge error. Basically, he balanced himself out by the end of the night. Kemp had one hit, and still only has one homer on the year. Gonzalez had to leave after two at-bats because of his neck strain. Ethier had one hit and is hitting a deplorable .243.
To sum it all up, there's just no punch in this lineup. The punch they do have in Crawford and Gonzalez are both hurt and appear in and out of the lineup on any given day. The rest of the lineup is an embarrassment of names like Uribe, Elian Herrera, and Luis Cruz. Those guys wouldn't even beat my local Little League team.
Friday night begins a three-game set at home against the Marlins. Well isn't that appropriate? The worst team in the NL (Marlins) vs. the third worst team (Dodgers). The Marlins came into this season as the league's biggest joke, and now the Dodgers are quickly taking over that coveted crown. Matt Magill will go against young sensation Jose Fernandez. Let's just go ahead and call this the eighth straight loss, OK?
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