Shohei Ohtani supplied some non permanent reprieve on Sunday.
Earlier than the sport, since present process Tommy John revision surgical procedure in 2023, drawing a big crowd within the customer’s dugout at Citi Subject as he touched 97 mph along with his fastball and struck out two batters in 5 at-bats.
4 and a half hours later, the two-way star dazzled along with his bat, as properly, belting a second-deck leadoff blast within the first inning in opposition to Mets ace and fellow Japanese star Kodai Senga to tie the foremost league lead with 18 dwelling runs on the season.
“I believed that infused some life into us,” supervisor Dave Roberts mentioned.
Alas, it wouldn’t final, the Dodgers as a substitute going quiet the remainder of the night time in a to the New York Mets.
They have been doomed by unhealthy protection early, the Mets scoring three early runs with the assistance of two Dodgers errors. They have been annoyed by wasted alternatives on the plate later, hitting into three double performs for a second consecutive recreation.
It despatched the staff to a sequence defeat in the weekend’s rematch of final yr’s Nationwide League Championship Collection. It additionally dropped them to 3-6 of their final 9 video games and 11th of September of their final 20.
Actually, outdoors of their 8-0 begin to the season, they’ve been little higher than a .500 staff, going simply 24-21 since then (even with one other seven-game successful streak combined in to that stretch).
And whereas they’re nonetheless in first place within the NL West, and trailing solely the Philadelphia Phillies, Detroit Tigers and New York Yankees for the very best document in baseball, they aren’t enjoying like a staff anyplace close to that distinction.
“Tonight was a type of nights that we simply gave them further outs, they usually took benefit,” Roberts mentioned.
“It’s been fairly irritating,” echoed third baseman Max Muncy. “Simply maintain capturing ourselves within the foot.”
There was no larger self-inflicted wound than the one Muncy suffered within the backside of the primary.
After two strikeouts from Landon Knack to start out the inning, Juan Soto hit a pointy grounder to 3rd that Muncy bobbled on a excessive hop, recovering too late to throw Soto out at first.
It was Muncy’s eighth error of the season, second-most amongst MLB third basemen, and first to not come on a throw.
“It’s a type of issues the place I’m simply actually not good defensively proper now,” Muncy mentioned. “Not going to shrink back from it, however all I can do is maintain exhibiting up each day, engaged on it, making an attempt to determine issues out, making an attempt to get higher. That’s what I’ve been doing.”
On Sunday, nonetheless, there was nothing Muncy may do.
One pitch later, Pete Alonso whacked a dangling curveball from Knack for a two-run homer. The Mets (32-21) wouldn’t squander the lead the remainder of the way in which.
“We have been making an attempt to get it down slightly bit, and clearly left it up,” Knack mentioned. “I might say he’s slightly extra aggressive with runners on, so was capable of reap the benefits of it.”
As Alonso rounded the bases, Muncy stared stoicly into the gap.
“It makes you’re feeling like the sport is in your shoulders. That’s how I really feel, at the very least,” Muncy mentioned. “It’s a play that must be made, and I ought to have made it. It’s only a irritating one.”
There have been loads of different moments, nonetheless, that left the Dodgers (32-21) shaking their head.
After Ohtani’s leadoff homer, their offense had the prospect so as to add extra. Mookie Betts reached on an error. Freddie Freeman moved him to 3rd with a double. When Will Smith adopted with a fly ball to heart area, it was deep sufficient for Betts to interrupt for dwelling. At the least, that’s the way it appeared.
As an alternative, Mets heart fielder Tyrone Taylor delivered a strike to the plate. And after Betts was initially dominated protected on a feet-first slide, a Mets problem obtained the decision overturned. An opportunity to construct some early respiration room for Knack had disappeared. And regardless of repeated alternatives to claw again later, the Dodgers didn’t scratch the rest throughout the plate.
Within the fourth inning, Freeman hit a leadoff single … just for Smith to promptly floor right into a double-play.
Later within the inning, Teoscar Hernández doubled and Muncy walked to place two aboard … just for Andy Pages to hit a deep fly ball that died on the warning observe in left.
Within the fifth, the Dodgers generated their greatest probability in opposition to Senga … just for the right-hander to induce a two-out grounder from Smith that ended the menace.
Within the sixth, Muncy drew a one-out stroll … just for Pages to roll into one other double play, the forty second for the Dodgers this season (fifth-most within the majors).
“I feel that the story is we’ve simply obtained to play clear baseball, have an excellent offensive strategy, as a result of we’re going to see some good pitching,” Roberts mentioned, with the Dodgers within the midst of a 29-game stretch in opposition to nothing however playoff-contending groups.
“Working example is Shohei didn’t get a fifth at-bat [tonight], as a result of they made performs they usually obtained a pair double performs and issues like that. All that stuff issues. In order that stuff, that’s actually highlighted once you’re enjoying in opposition to good ballclubs.”
The Mets scored their solely different run in opposition to Knack — who delivered simply the 14th six-inning begin of the season for the membership — within the third. With one on and one out, Mark Vientos hit a tough grounder up the center that Betts impressively obtained to from shortstop. However then Betts misfired on a flip to second base, crusing the ball over teammate Tommy Edman’s head to place runners on the corners. A fielder’s selection from Soto within the subsequent at-bat scored a run.
The three-1 deficit proved an excessive amount of for the Dodgers to surmount — ending a day that had begun with a lot optimism round Ohtani’s two-way skills with a dud of a efficiency and irritating sequence loss in Queens.
