Dodgers Way
FanSided

Dodgers need to capitalize on next two series with weak opponents

By Jack Trent Dorfman

LOS ANGELES, CA - JUNE 20: Kevin Pillar #1 of the San Francisco Giants is safe at home when Austin Barnes #15 of the Los Angeles Dodgers gets the throw late in the fifth inning at Dodger Stadium on June 20, 2019 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by John McCoy/Getty Images)
LOS ANGELES, CA - JUNE 20: Kevin Pillar #1 of the San Francisco Giants is safe at home when Austin Barnes #15 of the Los Angeles Dodgers gets the throw late in the fifth inning at Dodger Stadium on June 20, 2019 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by John McCoy/Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
3 of 3
Next
dodgers
BALTIMORE, MD – AUGUST 09: Dylan Bundy #37 of the Baltimore Orioles pitches in the first inning against the Houston Astros at Oriole Park at Camden Yards on August 9, 2019 in Baltimore, Maryland. (Photo by Greg Fiume/Getty Images) /

Now, onto the Orioles, the de facto barrel scrapers of the NL East for two years running. They have less for the Dodgers to worry about, but at the same time, the Dodgers haven’t seen really any of the Orioles pitchers this season, save a brief matchup against Ty Blach back when he was still a member of the Giants.

More from Dodgers Way

Facing pitchers who you have no live game experience against within the past year is valuable in of itself, as it will prepare the team to face pitchers from the AL in theory, or even from the other NL divisions in the postseason.

Beating the Orioles is important because it comes right before the Mets, and building offensive momentum heading into that series will be key in taking on the Mets’ staff of Jacob DeGrom, Noah Syndergaard, Marcus Stroman, and Zach Wheeler. The only O’s pitcher with stuff anywhere similar to these arms is Dylan Bundy.

Bundy, a former upper echelon prospect, has plenty of stuff, but the results just have not been consistent. The 26-year old debuted in the MLB at age 19. His main issue is that he allows a lot of home runs. In 2018 he allowed the most long balls in all of baseball with 41 home runs allowed. This season, he’s cut that down to a still-high 26 home runs in 138 innings, though he does have 138 strikeouts in that span.

Next. Is Will Smith to blame for LA's rotation struggles?. dark

Bundy will provide a good test for the strikeout-heavy players on the Dodgers, which is to say that he will provide a good test for pretty much every single hitter he faces. The Dodgers strike out a lot, but if they can limit their Ks against Bundy, perhaps that will lead to momentum against the Mets and their dominant rotation.

Home/LA Dodgers News