Dodgers: Five pitchers that have owned them since 2010

Every team has a pitcher they hate to see toeing the rubber on the other side of the field, even the highly-touted Los Angeles Dodgers line-up.

The Los Angeles Dodgers have been one of the most successful franchises in Major League Baseball over the last several years. That includes two trips to the World Series and seven-consecutive division titles.

That success hasn’t come by accident, as the front office has done a great job all-around. Between building one of the most successful farm systems in the game to finding and nurturing talented cast-offs, the Dodgers have found a way to construct a roster that is deep and strong from top to bottom and on both the hitting and pitching sides of the game.

A lot of that aforementioned talent resides on the hitting side of things, where the Dodgers have become one of the strongest offensive units in all of baseball. In 2019, the team ranked 4th in wRC+ (111), 4th in wOBA (.338), 5th in runs scored (886), 4th in home runs (279), and 4th in RBI (861). That has been spurred by leading the league in hard-hit rate last season, an astounding rate of 42.3%, and also resulted in an HR/FB ratio of 17.8% last season.

But every good offensive team has a nemesis that gives them fits. Every team has one guy or another that they struggle to get to every time and again, and the Dodgers are no exception. There are just certain pitchers that have owned the Dodgers over the years. As an interesting exercise, I thought it would be interesting to see which pitchers have had the Dodgers’ number since 2010.

In an effort to make things as fair as possible, I used 50 innings pitched as a minimum innings limit. This helped to pull the occasional reliever that simply had one or two good outings of the equation. It also helped to expand the picture a little more to allow for opponents outside of the division to make their cases as well, as it discouraged an advantage for guys that saw Los Angeles three or four times a season.

So without further ado, let’s take a look at which pitchers have dominated the Dodgers over the last decade.

Honorable mention: Ray – Arizona Diamondbacks

The inclusion of Robbie Ray is an interesting option, but one that is also split by one of his biggest detractors; consistency.

A veteran of just five-plus seasons, Ray’s career has been sparked by exciting strikeout numbers but also plagued by his ability to limit walks and harness his control. In 20 starts (120 innings) against the Dodgers during that span, he owns a lifetime mark of 8-5 with a 3.15 ERA and a league-best 12.1 K/9 while limiting the Dodgers to a .203 batting average during that span. However, that also comes with a 4.2 BB/9 which has resulted in a .302 OBP, 15 home runs allowed, and a 3.66 FIP.

Madison Bumgarner – San Francisco Giants

One would think that Madison Bumgarner would have a distinct advantage here. He’s raged in countless battles with the Dodgers over the years, both on the mound and toe-to-toe with some particular players. Any time Bumgarner has been penciled in as the opposing starter, you knew to expect fireworks from one side or the other, whether it be from a lights-out performance or from some other shenanigans that sparked controversy during the game.

In 224.1 innings of works against LA since 2010, he has by far the most innings of any pitcher against the Dodgers since 2010. Bumgarner has a cumulative ERA of 2.73 and has help Dodgers hitter to a batting line of .231/.278/.368. His FIP during that time of 3.51 doesn’t indicate much about his dominance in games but attests to his longevity in outings and showcases how much he would grind out each match-up against the boys in blue.

But it goes beyond straight peripherals for Bumgarner as well. There is a reason why he owns 15 wins in his career against the Dodgers. Unlike the aforementioned Ray, Bumgarner limits free passes, with just a 1.9 BB/9 mark against LA during that span. He has also held Dodgers hitters to a 31.8% hard-hit rate and despite allowing a 39.6% fly-ball rate, he has limited Los Angeles to just a 10.8% HR/FB ratio.

So while Bumgarner hasn’t exactly been dominant against the Dodgers over the years, he has been consistent and has guaranteed a tough outing nearly every time he’s taken the mound during the rivalry. While that continued presence will come in a different uniform in 2020 and beyond, Dodgers fans know they’ll still have the opportunity to get one over on Bumgarner while facing off against the Arizona Diamondbacks.

Stephen Strasburg – Washington Nationals

When Stephen Strasburg made short work of the Dodgers during the 2019 National League Division Series, it should have come as no surprise to fans that have watched the Washington right-hander take the mound against Los Angeles over the years. However, it may not have been quite as obvious due to the fact that the team may only see him once or twice a season.

However, while the Dodgers may have made out in the win column, make no mistake about it, Stephen Strasburg has been a heel for the Dodgers over the years.

In 11 starts against Los Angeles since 2010, Strasburg owns a lifetime record of just 3-5, but as we know with all starting pitchers, wins and losses don’t paint the full picture. In 71 innings of work, he owns a lifetime ERA of 2.54 (5th), a 3.17 FIP (7th), a 29.8% K rate (4th), and a 5.3 K/BB ratio (2nd).

Like Bumgarner, he’s controlled runs by limiting hard contact (29.5%), holding Dodgers hitters to a batting line of .191/.254/.315 and wOBA of just .249.

All that dominance set the stage for his postseason work in 2019, culminating with 12 innings of work against the Dodgers, including 17 strikeouts and a single walk issued. He would go on to win the World Series MVP award after going 5-0 during the 2019 postseason and guiding the Nationals to their first World Series title in team history.

Jacob DeGrom – New York Mets

To say that the Los Angeles Dodgers have a problem with Jacob DeGrom would be an understatement. The erstwhile Mets ace has been making a name for himself over the last two seasons, winning back-to-back National League Cy Young awards and also placing in the top-10 of the MVP vote in each year.

Needless to say, DeGrom has made the league his playground over the past two seasons, cementing his name among the best in baseball. Unfortunately, the Dodgers play on that same playground and it hasn’t been all fun and games for them since DeGrom debuted for the Mets in 2014.

Once again, we have a picture of a pitcher that hasn’t been on the winning end of such battles with the Dodgers, with DeGrom having an 0-4 lifetime record against Los Angeles. That comes with playing against one of the best teams in the game during that span, but that’s been the case with DeGrom over his career with the Mets, where his 66 wins over six seasons are not indicative of what he’s brought to the mound during that time.

Against the Dodgers, DeGrom owns a lifetime ERA of 2.87, a 0.989 WHIP, and an 8.6 K/9 rate.  Los Angeles hitters have managed just a .196/.258/.364 batting line against him, but home runs have been a little bit of a problem over that span, with DeGrom averaging a 16.7% HR/FB ratio against the tough Dodgers lineup. However, that runs opposite to his career numbers, where he puts up a 10.4% HR/FB ratio against MLB as a whole.

With DeGrom being a fixture in New York for at least the next two seasons, and possibly for a total of four seasons depending on opt-outs, the right-hander will certainly look to even the odds against the Dodgers and press the advantages he has in hopes of better results in the win-loss column. Meanwhile, the Dodgers will come out feeling good in taking home those wins despite their in-game struggles.

Cliff Lee – Philadelphia Phillies

Cliff Lee has a relatively successful career in Major League Baseball that spanned from 2002 through 2014, suiting up with the Cleveland Indians, Philadelphia Phillies, Seattle Mariners, and Texas Rangers. That run included an American League Cy Young award in 2008 and was a major component in four different significant trades during his playing days.

But how dominant could one pitcher really be against one team in just a four-year sample size?

The Dodgers saw that firsthand during the 2009 postseason, despite it being outside of our particular window of consideration. In one start against Los Angeles in the NLCS, Lee tossed eight innings of three-hit ball, with 10 strikeouts and zero walks, facing just two batters over the minimum.

He would leave Philly for a few seasons for the 2010 season, but after winding back up with the Phillies in 2011, he was right back up to his old hijinx.

In 53.2 innings of work against the Dodgers spanning from 2010 to 2014, Cliff Lee owns the lowest ERA (1.51), FIP (1.99), wOBA (.205), and BB/9 (1.5) while ranking 4th in K/9 (10.4), 5th in HR/9 (0.5). He held Dodgers hitters to a paltry .171/.209/.246 batting line with a 20.6% hard-hit rate and a soft-contact rate of 28.6% while inducing groundballs at a clip of 53.3%.

What does this all mean? Well, when the Dodgers were able to make contact with Lee’s offerings, they hit it weakly, something the National League was accustomed to during that timeframe. The league as a whole struggled against the lefty during that time frame, in which he went 41-30 with a 2.89 ERA, a 2.86 FIP, an 8.9 K/9 rate, and seven shutouts.

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Lee would retire following the 2014 season, compiling a lifetime record of 143-91 with a 3.52 ERA and an 8.0 K/9 ratio. Despite being just 35-years-old at the time, Dodgers fans were not too heartbroken to see him off into the sunset.