The Los Angeles Dodgers lost to the Minnesota Twins yesterday by a score of 10-7, marking LA’s 11th loss in its last 14 games. Some blame for the loss can be directed towards Los Angeles’ pitching staff, specifically the bullpen, which allowed six runs over the course of two innings.
“It better be rock bottom, as far as how we’ve been pitching, how we’ve been playing defense,” said Dodgers manager Dave Roberts during yesterday’s postgame press conference. “I think the offense is starting to kind of tick up, which is good… I think as far as quality of baseball, it’s been a tough watch.”
Things have not gone the Dodgers’ way ever since the Fourth of July. After being swept by the Milwaukee Brewers and Houston Astros, LA was able to string together two straight victories before losing four of their next five, including last night’s game.
“I like all of our guys, but, with this ball club, we need guys to perform,” Roberts explained. “That’s just the bottom line.”
Things got off to a rocky start with Yoshinobu Yamamoto allowing three runs in the second inning to put the Dodgers in a 3-0 hole. He did manage to hold the Twins scoreless after that, though, allowing LA to rally back and tie things up in the fourth inning.
“Yoshi was fantastic,” Roberts said. “So to kind of bottle that up – those last couple innings – and do that on the front end, I think is something that we need to shoot for. But to get five innings out of him and have the game even at that point in time was certainly a positive.”
After Yamamoto’s day was done, two of the Dodgers’ relievers allowed Minnesota to score three combined runs in the sixth inning. Ben Casparius, who gave up one of those runs, had to exit the game early with a right calf cramp.
“It’s all hitting us at once,” Roberts said. “I think that Ben had a cramp, so we’re hoping that he comes out of it fine.”
Outside of Casparius, the Dodgers’ four other relievers combined for three hits allowed, three walks, and four runs scored.
“You look at the guys in the pen just not throwing strikes. You scratch and claw back, and then you give free passes. That’s just a bad quality of life,” said Roberts. “And so, tonight, that’s what happened.”
The pitching staff and bullpen are not solely to blame for the Dodgers’ recent woes. Six of the team’s 26 rostered players have some sort of injury designation, including starting pitcher Blake Snell, outfielder Enrique Hernandez, and third baseman Max Muncy.
“I would argue that if we stay somewhat healthy, that this group is better than it was last year,” Dodgers general manager Brandon Gomes told ESPN. “Obviously, there’s a long time between now and the stretch run, but right now, I feel very good about the talent level of this pitching staff.”
Either way, Dave Roberts believes his team is working hard enough. The problem is they’re making a bunch of small mistakes that are piling up and leading to losses.
“I think that when things aren’t going well, we have to mind the little things,” he said. “That’s something that we gotta continue to be focused on. So, I think that’s more of the thought versus everyone’s trying to make a play. But you really gotta bear down a little bit more, especially when things are going well, on those little things.”
The Los Angeles Dodgers will once again be in LA today, where they hope to defeat the Twins and win that three-game home series. The first pitch in that contest is scheduled for 4:10 p.m. EDT.
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2025-07-23 20:41:01
