The Los Angeles Dodgers fell 5-1 to finish off a series sweep at the hands of the Philadelphia Phillies on Thursday.
The Dodgers had hoped that the matchup between the two best teams in the National League would act as a sort of litmus test. If it did, they failed, especially since the Phillies outscored them 19-5 in the series.
Afterward, Dodgers first baseman Freddie Freeman shared his take on the embarrassing showing this week, per Cary Osborne of Dodger Insider:
“We are injured. We have a lot of guys missing. But no one really cares about that, nor does this group in here,” said All-Star Freddie Freeman. “This is who we got. We want to go out there and try to win every ballgame. We just didn’t play very good this series. We’ve got three games left to end on a positive note.”
While the Dodgers ultimately just underperformed this weekend against the Phillies, Freeman does have a point regarding the injuries. Of the 15 players who played on Opening Day for the Dodgers, six are on the injured list, including All-Stars Tyler Glasnow and Mookie Betts and previous All-Stars Max Muncy and Jason Heyward.
The Dodgers have six current or former All-Stars on the injured list once pitcher Clayton Kershaw and Walker Buehler are added to the list.
The Dodgers are 4-8 in their last 12 games. Fortunately, they entered that stretch with a 7½-game lead in the National League West. Thanks to other teams in the division failing to capitalize, they now have a seven-game lead and 55-39 record.
Dodgers dominated by Phillies
The Phillies didn't just outscore the Dodgers 19-5 in the series. Philadelphia absolutely lit up Los Angeles' starters. Philly went an astonishing 22-for-48 (.458) against Dodgers starting pitching.
Meanwhile, the Dodgers were 12-for-64 (.188) against Philadelphia’s starting pitching trio of Zach Wheeler, Cristopher Sanchez and Aaron Nola.
The Phillies hit seven home runs in the series. The Dodgers hit two, including Gavin Lux’s solo home run on Thursday.
The Dodgers even optioned starting pitcher Bobby Miller to Triple-A after he gave up nine runs in four innings against the Phillies on Tuesday.
It has been a struggle for Bobby Miller this year, and the outing against the Phillies brought his season ERA up to 8.07 on the season. He had started seven games for the Dodgers this season, and it went downhill after his first outing against the St. Louis Cardinals, in which he went six innings and gave up no runs.
The Dodgers' biggest need ahead of the trade deadline is clear, and it is the starting rotation. As currently constructed, Los Angeles has James Paxton, Gavin Stone, Landon Knack and Justin Wrobleski in the rotation. Glasnow, Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Buehler and Kershaw are all on the injured list.
Los Angeles looks to bounce back in a three-game series in Detroit before the All-Star break.
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