LOS ANGELES, CA — The Dodgers returned home after a 3-3 road trip looking to close the gap on the NL West-leading Arizona Diamondbacks and their three-game lead. They have a four-game series against the Pittsburgh Pirates, who have been a surprising pain in the neck for the perennial NL Western Division champs. The Dodgers are 3-8 vs. the Pirates since 2022.
The Buccos sent out their 27-year-old and 2023 All-Star Mitch Keller to see if they can continue to stifle the boys in blue.
Mitch Keller – Image Credit: Emma Sharon/Latino Sports
But it was not in the stars for the Pirates ace as he went five innings with a line of eight hits, five runs, four earned runs, one walk, seven strikeouts, and one home run off the bat of Max Muncy, his nineteenth of the season.
Tie it up, Max! pic.twitter.com/WVe5yLfmrW
— Los Angeles Dodgers (@Dodgers) July 4, 2023
The Dodgers started 26-year-old Michael Grove, who gave them four solid innings of five-hit, one-run ball. They could not have asked for more from Grove. With their starting pitching struggling lately, this was a much-needed innings-eating performance from the young right-hander. One thing I will never understand is how a starter can pitch brilliantly over four innings with his team never trailing and the win goes to a relief pitcher who only pitches one inning.
The Dodger bullpen also came up big, and we saw Daniel Hudson make his first appearance at Dodger Stadium since June of 2022.
Daniel Hudson – Image Credit: Los Angeles Times
The Dodgers came away with a 5-2 win tonight, the 700th career-win for Dave Roberts as manager of the Dodgers.
Dave Roberts – Image Credit: LA Dodgers/MLB
Los Angeles will start Emmet Sheehan, who is 2-0 in three starts tomorrow. He owns a 2.65 ERA over 17 innings pitched with 12 strikeouts. The Buccos will start Luis L. Ortiz, San Pedro de Macoris, Dominican Republic.
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