The Dodgers continued their season-long celebration of final yr’s World Sequence triumph by handing out championship rings Monday. The 49,702 individuals who purchased tickets acquired replicas whereas Gavin Lux, who performed for the Dodgers final season and is now with the Cincinnati Reds, acquired an actual one.
If the workforce hopes to win extra jewellery once more this fall, the subsequent 5 weeks might be key. As a result of after Monday’s 7-0 win over the Reds, the Dodgers lead San Diego by a sport within the Nationwide League West with simply 30 extra left within the common season for each groups.
Nonetheless, if the Dodgers (75-57) proceed to play as they did Monday, when Andy Pages homered twice, driving in 4 runs, and Emmet Sheehan threw a career-high seven scoreless innings, they’ll be powerful to catch.
“The protection was simply engaged, each single man on the market. The at-bats, one by way of 9, had been nice,” Dodgers supervisor Dave Roberts stated. “It’s in all probability one of many higher video games, full video games, that we’ve performed in months. I’m actually, actually enthusiastic about the way in which we performed.”
Excited, too, as a result of what began as a marathon six months in the past is now a distinct type of race.
“We’re in a dash now,” stated Michael Conforto, who had two hits and made two excellent performs in left discipline. “We’re in a race for the division.”
They usually’re a step forward in that race with the Padres, who, just like the Dodgers, have 10 sequence remaining, 5 at house and 5 on the street. However San Diego has the simpler schedule, primarily based on the mixed successful proportion of its opponents (.474) coming into the week. The Dodgers have the fourth-easiest schedule.
For Roberts, his workforce’s slim margin for error is one thing to be embraced because it has the potential to metal his workforce for the postseason, versus merely coasting into the playoffs.
Andy Pages hits a house run within the third inning for the Dodgers towards the Reds on Monday.
(Carlin Stiehl / Los Angeles Occasions)
“Competitors ought to carry out the perfect in you,” he stated. “So the place the margins are smaller and every thing issues extra versus you could have an enormous lead and also you’re not taking part in with urgency since you don’t have to, after which must type of flip the swap, that’s powerful.”
The Dodgers are also quickly including reinforcements for his or her playoff push. Over the weekend, relievers Tanner Scott and Kirby Yates returned from the injured record and utility participant Kiké Hernández was activated Monday. Third baseman Max Muncy and infielder/outfielder Hyeseong Kim might be again by the subsequent street journey, if not earlier than. Utilityman Tommy Edman and pitcher Roki Sasaki doubtless aren’t far behind.
Then there’s Sheehan (5-2), who was sensible Monday, pitching a career-best seven innings and matching a profession excessive with 10 strikeouts to win his third straight resolution. Sheehan gave up simply two hits and walked one.
“I undoubtedly must construct on it. Attempt to simply hold the identical progress we’ve been doing, hold that going for the subsequent one,” Sheehan stated. “It’s fairly enjoyable. It’s much more enjoyable than watching the ball go over the fence, for certain.”
For Roberts, it’s as if his workforce acquired a half-dozen new gamers.
Dodgers shortstop Mookie Betts, left, celebrates with proper fielder Teoscar Hernández after hitting a house run within the seventh inning towards the Reds on Monday.
(Carlin Stiehl / Los Angeles Occasions)
“These are type of deadline trades in themselves,” he stated. “I do recognize the fellows which have been right here, type of grinding by way of. Nevertheless it’s good looking on the horizon, seeing the fellows that we acquired coming.”
Pages put the Dodgers in entrance to remain within the third Monday, driving a 102-mph fastball from Hunter Greene into the bullpen in left discipline. He hit one other within the fifth inning for his twenty third homer of the season, second-most on the workforce behind Shohei Ohtani’s 45.
Within the sixth, a double by Freddie Freeman and walks to Will Smith and Teoscar Hernández loaded the bases for Pages, whose two-out grounder to quick acquired beneath Elly De La Cruz for a two-run error. A Mookie Betts’ homer, his second hit of the sport, with one out within the seventh and a Pages’ sacrifice fly within the eighth closed out the scoring.
Relievers Jack Dreyer and Anthony Banda adopted Sheehan, pitching an inning every to finish the shutout, the workforce’s fourth within the final 23 video games.
The Dodgers had solely three shutouts within the first 109 video games.
Now come the reinforcements, though Kiké Hernández stated he nearly didn’t make it. After happening the injured record July 6 with left elbow irritation, he tried three injections and non-invasive rehab procedures, however nothing appeared to work.
“I acquired to a degree the place I didn’t know if it was going to occur. We had been fairly near it not occurring,” he stated of his return. “There are some procedures that I went by way of that didn’t do something. I went by way of 4 photographs in a month, and [the] first three didn’t do something, and fortuitously the fourth one was the reply.
“After the final shot, I used to be ache free.”
Hernández stated he anticipated to begin in left discipline Tuesday. He joins the Dodgers simply in time for his or her dash to the end.
“It’s playoff-atmosphere video games from right here on out,” he stated. “Hopefully it brings out the perfect in folks and likewise teaches the youthful guys that when the time comes and we’re in October, the second doesn’t get too huge for them.”
