Dodgers: After Getting to 500 the Dodgers Can’t Overlook the Marlins

LOS ANGELES, CA - APRIL 22: Corey Seager
LOS ANGELES, CA - APRIL 22: Corey Seager /
facebooktwitterreddit

The Dodgers finally appear to be trending in the right direction after winning their series with the Nationals.  The Dodgers have now won five of their last six games.

Now that the Dodgers have finally gotten to 500, they will look to get above the 500 mark for good against the Miami Marlins.  The Marlins are one of the worst teams in the league at 5-16, but the way the Dodgers have been playing, they do not have the luxury of overlooking the Marlins.  You know Don Mattingly wants to stick it to the Dodgers any chance he gets, and he will have his club fired up to play against the Dodgers.

Here are three reasons the Dodgers shouldn’t expect to just walk into three wins this series:

Buehler Not the Only Young Stud Pitching Monday

Dodger fans are in for a delight tonight as Walker Buehler finally makes his long-anticipated first career start against the Marlins.  There is no doubt that Buehler is an ace in the making and has stuff comparable to Justin Verlander, but there is another good young starting pitcher that is starting against the Dodgers tonight.

Jarlin García is making his third start of the season tonight.   In his first two starts, all he did was allow one single hit in eleven total innings.  García threw six hitless innings against the New York Mets who have actually had a nice start to the season, and he only allowed one hit in five innings to the vaunted NY Yankees lineup.  That start was also in New York, so this young left-hander has shown nerves of steel so far. The Dodgers offense could be in for a battle tonight.

Talented Outfielder Acquired in Yelich Trade

The Marlins dumped a bunch of good players this offseason as park of new part-owner Derek Jeter’s fire sale.  The Marlins did receive some legit talent back in some of their trades.  In the Christian Yelich trade, the Marlins received top prospect Lewis Brinson who is a true five-tool player.

Brinson is off to a slow start this season only hitting .151 but he has flashed some of his power potential hitting three home runs so far this season.  While he may not be Giancarlo Stanton, Brinson has flashed some of his potential power and can make the Dodgers’ pitchers pay if they don’t execute pitches against him. Brinson is a very talented young player and some experts expected him to contend for the NL Rookie of the Year award.

More from LA Dodgers News

Veteran Bats Can Still do Damage

Despite the Marlins offseason overhaul, they still feature veterans who are very good baseball players.  Three of these veterans are Justin Bour, Starlin Castro, and JT Realmuto.  Bour has four home runs this season and he hit twenty-five home runs last season.  He is a true power bat that is capable of driving out fastballs with ease.  He does strike out a lot but that doesn’t take away from him being a legit power threat.

JT Realmuto just came off the DL and has only played in four games this season.  He still has one home run and four RBI’s.  The Marlins’ JT is a rare catcher who has speed and is a very good hitter.  Starlin Castro is slapping plenty of base hits this season although his power has been lacking.  He is still a decent hitter who is capable of hurting the Dodgers.  These three veterans along with Brinson are the core of the Marlins offense.

Next: The Dodgers have no room in their rotation for Walker Buehler

Regardless of their 5-16 record, the Dodgers need to show up to win their series with Don Mattingly’s Marlins.  The Marlins still have some hitters capable of hurting the Dodgers and while their rotation doesn’t look great, the Dodgers were shut down by Jeremy Hellickson for five innings last night.  The Dodgers have a history of making unknown pitchers look good.  Here’s to the Dodgers showing up and taking the next three games from the Marlins.