They’d already completed it to Max Fried and Yu Darvish, Logan Webb and Carlos Rodón.
On Tuesday night time, they added Corbin Burnes to the record.
Dealing with this 12 months’s juggernaut of a Dodgers lineup could be arduous sufficient. Doing it a number of occasions has seemingly bordered on the unattainable.
Burnes discovered the arduous approach Tuesday, changing into the most recent pitcher not solely to regress in his second begin in opposition to the Dodgers, however to take action mightily, giving up seven runs in 3 ⅔ innings within the Dodgers’ 10-1 blowout win in entrance of a sold-out residence crowd.
“He’s nonetheless one of many sport’s finest,” supervisor Dave Roberts stated. “To get to Corbin like we did tonight reveals how good we could be in opposition to the sport’s finest.”
5 days earlier, Burnes helped the Brewers beat the Dodgers in Milwaukee. The reigning NL Cy Younger Award winner shut them out by way of 5 innings and, regardless of giving up three runs within the sixth, nonetheless restricted the harm sufficient to earn the win.
Tuesday was a distinct story.
Within the first inning, the right-hander gave up a leadoff double to Mookie Betts and an RBI single to Freddie Freeman.
He walked two batters within the second inning earlier than serving a down-the-middle cutter to Trayce Thompson, who promptly deposited it into the left-field pavilion for a three-run homer.
And after a scoreless third, Burnes’ night time unraveled for good within the fourth.
Chris Taylor reached on an infield single and stole second. Thompson drove him in with a base hit to left. Betts swung by way of strike three for what ought to have been the ultimate out, however was capable of attain first safely after a wild pitch bounced away from the catcher.
Then, Trea Turner delivered the knockout blow, touchdown an RBI single in middle to make it 6-0.
Even after Burnes exited, he was charged with another run, courtesy of one other Freeman RBI single in opposition to reliever Brent Suter.
The seven runs marked essentially the most Burnes had given up since 2019.
He additionally turned the second star pitcher this week to fail to finish 4 innings at Dodger Stadium, after Miami Marlins ace Sandy Alcantara additionally managed simply 3 ⅔ innings in his worst begin of the season Sunday.
“I’ve talked loads this 12 months about, the staff offense has been significantly higher over the past two and a half, three months,” Roberts stated. “It’s only a compilation of excellent info, good presentation and good execution from everybody.”
Tuesday additional emphasised probably the most spectacular developments for Dodgers (85-37) this season, too.
To this point this 12 months, the staff has confronted 24 totally different opposing beginning pitchers a number of occasions.
Of their first assembly with the Dodgers, these pitchers have a mixed 4.11 ERA, and the Dodgers are simply 15-9 in these video games.
However in each subsequent outing — resembling Burnes’ on Tuesday, which got here simply 5 days after he’d confronted the Dodgers in Milwaukee — these pitchers have a mixed 7.55 ERA, resulting in a 26-7 mark for the Dodgers.
“[When] you already know a man, you already know what they’re gonna convey, you already know their strengths and the way they’re gonna assault you,” stated Roberts, whose personal starter, Tony Gonsolin, averted such a pitfall by giving up only one run in 5 innings his second time dealing with the Brewers (65-57) in every week.
“I believe for us,” Roberts continued, “that typically bodes higher.”
His first baseman agreed.
Freeman stated the Dodgers took a extra aggressive strategy in opposition to Burnes on Tuesday than they did final week — one thing that was emphasised of their each day pregame hitters’ assembly, and strengthened as clips of Burnes’ prior begin in opposition to them flashed throughout the batting cage TVs.
Certainly, Betts’ leadoff double got here on the second pitch of his at-bat. Freeman’s RBI knock got here on the third.
Thompson was extra affected person on his residence run — the spotlight of a two-for-three, four-RBI night time that spearheaded the Dodgers offense — hitting it in a 2-and-2 depend.
However then he and Turner went again on the assault within the fourth, with Thompson scorching a single on a 3-and-0 pitch and Turner knocking Burnes by dumping a first-pitch curveball into middle area.
“That was our plan at present, to assault and assault early,” Freeman stated. “And it labored out for us.”
Definitely, most groups carry out higher in opposition to pitchers the extra they see them. Hitters develop into extra conversant in an opponent’s strategy, arm angles and motion of pitches. They've expertise to attract upon, previous failures to study from.
However the Dodgers this 12 months are virtually making it appear to be a science.
Fried pitched seven shutout innings in his first assembly with the Dodgers this 12 months, then gave up two runs in 6 ⅔ innings the subsequent. Darvish spun six scoreless in his first matchup this 12 months, however has given up seven runs in 12 innings over two begins since.
Rodón managed two good begins in opposition to the Dodgers (six innings, two runs and 6 innings, no runs) earlier than they scored 5 in simply 5 innings in opposition to him final time.
Merrill Kelly is maybe essentially the most evident instance, going from a six-inning, three-run efficiency in April to a two-inning, eight-run clunker three weeks later.
“I at all times assume I’m a bit extra comfy the second time I face a man,” stated Chris Taylor, one in all 4 Dodgers on Tuesday who had a number of hits. “You simply sort of know what to anticipate.”
Doing it in opposition to Burnes, within the span of lower than every week no much less, is perhaps essentially the most promising signal.
It’s the kind of factor the Dodgers might want to do in October, once they may face opposing aces twice in a playoff sequence — the sort of game-to-game progress that is perhaps crucial of their pursuit of a championship.
“These are the blokes we’re gonna be dealing with in the event you’re gonna need to win a World Sequence,” Freeman stated. “It was a superb take a look at for us.”
And, as they’ve been doing all season, one the Dodgers handed with flying colours as soon as once more.
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