by Megan Garcia
Tyler Glasnow walked into the Dodger dugout with a standing ovation. His work of 11 strikeouts in seven innings was complete. Behind him was the Dodgers’ second no-hit bid in three games.
This one, however, ended in a 3–1 win.
Dodger starters have found their collective rhythm amid a tight divisional race. Some outings haven’t been quite as flashy as no-hit bids, but they have been instrumental in keeping the Dodgers in first place.
The last three games have been a microcosm of it. And a postseason berth may rely on the rotation for the remaining 19 regular season games.
“If you look at our ball club, we’re built around our starters,” said manager Dave Roberts. “We’re going to lean on them. I do think that those guys just continue to persevere, log zeroes, give our offense to break a game open, stay in a game…it gives us a chance to win.”
Glasnow followed a similar path Yoshinobu Yamamoto walked on Saturday. Both took their no-hit bids late into games: Glasnow through seven innings on Monday; Yamamoto through 8 2/3 innings.
In between them is veteran Clayton Kershaw, who tossed 5 2/3 innings on Sunday. Kershaw struck out a season high eight and didn’t allow a hit until the fourth inning.
The 17 wins by the Dodger rotation since July 18 rank among Major League Baseball’s top 10.
Dodger starters have also strung together a 3.59 ERA in the second half — fourth-best in the Majors.
“Because of what they’re doing, it opens things up for all of us.” Roberts said.
Opposing teams are hitting .220 against Dodger starters in the second half — the third-lowest batting average in baseball. The 105 runs scored against Dodger starters in the second half also ranks third lowest.
They’ve been able to keep games close to set up the Dodger offense, like in Monday’s game with Mookie Betts’ go-ahead RBI single in the eighth.
Glasnow’s 15th start was initially lined up to be on Friday against the Orioles. But he experienced lower back tightness that morning, so it led to a delay till Monday.
This was Glasnow’s second start this season with at least 10 strikeouts. His first was a 12-punchout game in seven innings against the Twins on July 23. It was only his third start since being activated from the injured list with right shoulder inflammation on July 9.
Since then, Glasnow has a 2.81 ERA in 10 starts with 69 strikeouts. Opponents are hitting .162 against him in that span.
Last night, they hit .000.
Tyler Glasnow’s no-hit bid continues a strong stretch by Dodger starters was originally published in Dodger Insider on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.