Dodgers getting shut out by Erick Fedde, Nationals is the definition of baseball

WASHINGTON, DC - MAY 25: Erick Fedde #32 of the Washington Nationals pitches in the third inning during a baseball game against the Los Angeles Dodgers at Nationals Park on May 25, 2022 in Washington DC. (Photo by Mitchell Layton/Getty Images)
WASHINGTON, DC - MAY 25: Erick Fedde #32 of the Washington Nationals pitches in the third inning during a baseball game against the Los Angeles Dodgers at Nationals Park on May 25, 2022 in Washington DC. (Photo by Mitchell Layton/Getty Images)

It look 43 games, but the Los Angeles Dodgers finally put up a goose egg on Wednesday against the Washington Nationals. In the 1-0 loss, the Dodgers fell to 29-14 on the year.

Devastating. How will they ever recover? (That’s a nice little jab at the fans complaining about a lack of offense, by the way.)

LA scored 19 runs in the first two games of this series and were playing with house money in Game 3 as they geared up to fly back across the country to wrap up their road trip in Arizona against the D-Backs.

Though this Dodgers lineup was far from at full strength (Mookie Betts, Cody Bellinger and Will Smith didn’t start, with Hanser Alberto, Edwin Rios and Austin Barnes taking their place), Trea Turner, Justin Turner, Freddie Freeman and Chris Taylor were still ready and able to produce runs.

But nope. Baseball truly defined itself on Wednesday evening when Nationals starter Erick Fedde had one of the best outings of his career, going six shutout innings while allowing four hits and one walk before the bullpen blanked the Dodgers over the final three frames.

What’s even funnier about this? Fedde, for his career, is drastically worse at Nationals Park, logging a 5.64 ERA and 1.58 WHIP in 46 games (37 starts). This was the first time since June 18 of last year where he pitched six or more scoreless innings, and he has just four such outings dating back to his MLB debut in 2018.

The Dodgers somehow got blanked by Erick Fedde of the Nationals

“Baseball,” as they say.

Whoops, we forgot one major detail about Fedde’s career thus far. The man is somehow lights out in the month of May? No, seriously, it’s not even close.

  • April/March: 4.67 ERA, 1.35 WHIP in 10 games
  • May: 2.96 ERA and 1.22 WHIP in 15 games
  • June: 5.05 ERA and 1.56 WHIP in 11 games
  • July: 7.61 ERA and 1.92 WHIP in 12 games
  • August: 5.00 ERA and 1.47 WHIP in 16 games
  • Sept./Oct.: 5.54 ERA and 1.40 WHIP in 20 games

The Dodgers simply ran into this very infrequent buzzsaw at the wrong time … and, oddly enough, that’s what makes this sport so great.

Julio Urías, who led MLB with 20 wins in 2021, got the loss after surrendering one earned run and is now 3-4 on the season despite a 2.49 ERA and 1.06 WHIP.

There are times when this is beyond frustrating to even document, but when you’re as good as the Dodgers, sometimes it’s comforting to sit back and laugh at the wildly unexpected nature of baseball.

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