PITTSBURGH — Right down to their closing three outs, preventing to stave off a sweep, the Dodgers performed a few of their greatest baseball on Thursday night time — and maybe, of their three-game sequence at PNC Park — within the ninth inning.
Although Mookie Betts led off the body with a homer and his crew strung collectively hits to plate one other pair of runs, narrowly avoiding being shut out in back-to-back video games, it was finally too little, too late.
After being shut down by a dominant Paul Skenes early on, the Dodgers rallied late however had been unable to keep away from falling, 5-3, to the Pirates. The loss sealed a three-game sweep by the hands of the Bucs, who’re 13 video games underneath .500 and in final place within the NL Central.
It follows a troubling development for the Dodgers over the previous month. Since Aug. 1, the Dodgers have gone 11-4 in opposition to groups with .500 information or higher. However Thursday’s loss dropped them to 4-12 in opposition to sub-.500 groups in that very same span.
“I haven’t got a cause for it, outdoors of the truth that groups are going to deliver their greatest in opposition to us. However that is groups with above .500 information, too,” supervisor Dave Roberts mentioned. “Tonight, in a vacuum, we confronted top-of-the-line pitchers, however yeah, does not change the truth that different groups, we simply have not discovered methods to beat these guys with dropping information.”
The Dodgers got here into September with one of many simpler schedules within the Majors, at the very least on paper. They had been tied with the Cubs for the fourth best power of schedule (.479) earlier than the White Sox-Twins sport ended.
However video games aren’t performed on paper, and by dropping to non-contenders, the Dodgers are squandering alternatives to drag away in a tightly contested NL West.
The Padres, who twice briefly overtook the Dodgers for first place within the division final month, had been swept by the Orioles — L.A.’s subsequent opponent — this week they usually have misplaced eight of their previous 10 video games total.
As an alternative of padding their lead, the Dodgers are in the identical place they had been heading into the ultimate month of the common season: Two video games forward of the Padres for first place within the division, and now three video games behind the Phillies for a first-round bye within the postseason.
“If we are available in right here and do what everyone knows we’re able to doing, we’d have a much bigger lead, extra cushion,” mentioned starter Blake Snell, who allowed 5 runs in 5 innings. “However that’s not what occurred. We’re the place we’re speculated to be. That is what we’ve earned. We’ve bought to determine it out and we are going to. I’m assured of that. We’re such an excellent crew. We’ve bought to return collectively, determine it out and get it going.”
The mix of the calendar working out and the stakes ramping up have turned up the strain for the Dodgers. On some nights, that strain has manifested itself in optimistic methods, giving the crew a wholesome quantity of urgency to gasoline extra targeted play.
On different nights, it has led to gamers urgent and making an attempt to do an excessive amount of as people.
Veteran infielder Miguel Rojas believes that the frustration has compounded on himself and his teammates at occasions. They want, he mentioned, to play for one another and discover pleasure within the sport.
“I really feel like ever since we began enjoying poorly a pair months in the past, the strain and frustration has been build up on the crew. And I don’t see anyone smiling and having an excellent time,” Rojas mentioned. “Everyone knows, while you’re dropping baseball video games, it’s not that enjoyable. However I really feel like we have now to discover a solution to put every little thing in perspective.
“We’re nonetheless in first place. We’re nonetheless two video games forward of the Padres. We should always be capable of have some enjoyable whereas we’re enjoying the sport and type of loosen up a little bit bit extra. As a result of I believe when this crew is collectively like that, we’re actually onerous to beat.”
The Dodgers consider that they’ve an excessive amount of expertise to play the best way they’ve over the previous couple of months. They nonetheless have religion that their greatest baseball is but to return, as irritating as issues have been not too long ago.
“It should occur,” Roberts mentioned. “I nonetheless consider it should occur.”
The idea is there. If pleasure is the lacking piece, then the Dodgers want to seek out it sooner reasonably than later.
