The Los Angeles Dodgers went into their homestand on a modest three-game winning streak that was a byproduct of sweeping the San Diego Padres at Petco Park. The team was 18-4 in August but saw their momentum stall in a 4-2 loss to the Colorado Rockies.
Will Smith went 3-for-3 with a home run, and Trea Turner also homered, but the Dodgers only mustered six hits. They didn’t log an at-bat with a runner in scoring position until the ninth inning, then went 0-for-3 in that scenario.
Rockies relief pitcher Carlos Estévez could best be described as effectively wild in his save.
“I just thought obviously he was amped up and emotional, and we chased,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said after the loss. “I didn’t get a look at that last call on (Corey) Seager, but it just seemed like we chased. That inning certainly didn’t cost us the game.
“I think overall, punching 12 times, no walks, not a good performance offensively. I think Will had a really nice night and Trea ran into one with a really good piece of hitting, but outside of that we really didn’t do anything.”
Prior to being held in check by a beleaguered Rockies bullpen, the Dodgers were largely stymied by Kyle Freeland. The pair of solo home runs were half of the total hits he allowed over six innings.
“I thought he spun us a lot,” Roberts said of Freeland, who finished the night with seven strikeouts. “There was the change but then also the slider, he was striking it when he needed to and getting us to chance down below, and mixing in his fastball at various times.”
Roberts: Dodgers’ loss not a ‘letdown’
Losing to a sub-.500 team after facing the Padres could be perceived as the Dodgers letting their guard down, but Roberts refuted that notion.
“I think we’ve been playing really good baseball. I didn’t expect us to have a letdown. I don’t think it was an emotional letdown,” he said. “We jut didn’t score more runs than they did.
“I thought Brusdar made a mistake on a first-pitch homer, I thought Andre was great, Vesia was good, Greene was really good. Ultimately we scored two runs. Honestly, I think we were prepared, we were rested, and we just didn’t score enough.”
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