SAN DIEGO — The house crew was one strike from victory Friday night time, when the Petco Park video board immediately erupted in hues of pink and mint, flashing the popular accompaniment to any recreation towards the Dodgers: BEAT LA.
Then got here the 102-mph fastball, then a swing and a miss, and the San Diego Padres had certainly crushed the Dodgers.
For Dodgers followers who thought the Nationwide League West had been gained final weekend at Dodger Stadium, this simply in from San Diego: The NL West is tied.
These have been phrases on this publication simply 5 days in the past: “The Dodgers now lead the National League West by two games, but it feels like 20.”
The Dodgers had simply swept the Padres, their solely competitors for the division title. The Dodgers have been 8-2 towards the Padres this season. There was a blue wave of emotion. The factor that occurred final is the factor you keep in mind finest.
“It’s natural,” Dodgers supervisor Dave Roberts mentioned. “That’s the great thing about fandom. People get excited. That’s a great thing about sports.”
The sensation within the clubhouse final weekend?
“In here? We played a great series, but there’s still a lot of baseball left to play,” Roberts mentioned. “It wasn’t going to be won or lost then, and it’s not going to be won or lost this weekend.”
The difficulty will not be with the emotion. The difficulty is with the schedule.
The variety of video games left after this weekend: 31. The variety of Dodgers-Padres video games left after this weekend: 0.
That is baseball’s finest rivalry, with a division title and potential first-round playoff bye on the road. The Dodgers and Padres ought to be going through one another to wrap up the season, with all that emotion bursting forth.
As an alternative, the Dodgers end the common season towards one other conventional rival, the (checks notes) Seattle Mariners.
There was loads of emotion among the many Dodgers and Padres fan bases already this 12 months, largely within the type of angst.
The Dodgers gained the winter, and Padres followers questioned why their crew was not maintaining with the competitors.
The Padres gained the commerce deadline, and Dodgers followers questioned why their crew was not maintaining with the competitors.
For the Dodgers, the cliche is about to be put to a real-life take a look at: Getting a participant off the injured checklist is rather like getting a participant in a commerce.
Reliever Tanner Scott was activated Friday. Reliever Kirby Yates may very well be activated as quickly as Saturday.
Infielder/outfielder Kiké Hernández may very well be activated subsequent week, adopted in some order by relievers Michael Kopech and Brock Stewart, infielder/outfielder Hyeseong Kim, infielder/outfielder Tommy Edman and third baseman Max Muncy.
On Friday, infielder Alex Freeland hit his first main league residence run, however infielder Buddy Kennedy (.287 OPS) went hitless, and the Dodgers burned their backup catcher to bat for him. They trusted outfielder Justin Dean to pinch-run and play middle subject, however to not bat.
Alex Freeland celebrates after hitting a solo residence run within the third inning of a 2-1 loss to the Padres on Friday.
(Sean M. Haffey / Getty Photographs)
“This is our club right now,” Roberts mentioned. “We have guys coming back.”
On a sizzling August night time, Petco Park was its traditional energetic self, with its traditional sellout crowd, with Dodgers followers drowning out chants of “Let’s Go Padres” and Padres followers returning the favor on the sound of “Let’s Go Dodgers.”
Amid depth match for October, the Dodgers and Padres every let a robust beginning pitcher — Blake Snell for L.A., Yu Darvish for San Diego — proceed quite than reflexively take away him for the third time by the lineup.
How do you win in October, with pitchers like Snell and Darvish lined up?
Is it with the house run?
Just one main league crew has extra residence runs than the Dodgers. The Dodgers scored their solely run Friday on a house run.
Is it with small ball?
Just one main league crew has fewer residence runs than the Padres. The Padres scored each their runs in a single inning Friday, with a rally that included three singles, a stroll, a sacrifice bunt and a sacrifice fly.
The Padres dropped three sacrifice bunts Friday. They’ve 40 this season, probably the most within the majors. The Dodgers have eight, the fewest of any NL crew.
Earlier than the sport, I spoke with Mason Miller, the previous Athletics All-Star nearer turned Padres eighth-inning setup man. Up to now in his profession, Miller mentioned, the largest recreation of his profession has been closing the A’s closing recreation in Oakland final September.
“I think I said it after that game: until I play in the playoffs, that will probably be my all-time baseball memory,” Miller mentioned. “Now it doesn’t seem like I’ll have to wait that much longer to get that playoff taste.”
Not for much longer in any respect. As of Friday morning, Baseball Prospectus put the Dodgers’ probability of constructing the playoffs at 99.8% and the Padres’ probability at 99.6%.
Perhaps this weekend gained’t mark the final Dodgers-Padres recreation this season. What we actually need is the primary NL Championship Sequence between the Dodgers and the Padres, with the winner advancing to the World Sequence: SoCal vs. the World.
