The Dodgers were disappointed after Webb appeared early on NBC Sports Bay Area.
SAN FRANCISCO – Los Angeles Dodgers manager Dave Roberts knew the challenges his team faced Wednesday night as it looked to sweep the Giants on the road and improve to 6-0 on the season against its NL West rivals.
Giving the ball to 29-year-old Elieser Hernández for the first time this season, Giants coach Bob Melvin left it to staff ace Logan Webb to get back in the win column one night after giving up eight runs and a blowout. Roberts acknowledged the difficulties the Dodgers have faced on the pregame web, comparing the arsenal of the 2023 NL Cy Young Award runner-up to that of a backyard pitcher who throws a wiffle ball.
“It’s very durable and a really good competitor,” Roberts said. “It’s difficult to hit him accurately because the ball moves everywhere. He is not afraid. In my opinion, he is probably one of the most underrated starting pitchers in baseball. … Every time he gets the ball, they have a good chance to win.”
Webb’s rivalry shone brightest in the Giants’ 4-1 win. Especially after a rough start to what looked like a long ballgame in the Dodgers’ favor.
Mookie Betts led off the game by hitting a low changeup from the strike zone to center field and issuing a six-pitch walk to Shohei Ohtani, putting star first baseman Freddie Freeman at the plate. Having the speed of Betts and Ohtani on base and Freeman at the plate is never good for a pitcher. The same goes for even web-level players. But Webb recorded a foul tip strikeout on catcher Curt Casali’s glove, sending Freeman back to the dugout.
Dodgers catcher Will Smith was hit by a ball on his left arm during his ninth at-bat. Just like that, Webb had already thrown 23 pitches through the game’s first four batters, recorded only one out, and loaded the bases to Max Muncy, who came into the night with a career batting average of .375 for Webb, including three home runs.
Webb struck out Muncy on four pitches and Teoscar Hernández lined out right fielder Mike Yastrzemski and escaped with a scoreless first inning. The Dodgers brought in six batters for hits and forced Webb to throw 32 pitches but had nothing to show for it.
The first inning was an opportunity to take advantage of Webb’s mistake, and the weakness caused by the three outs remained even after the loss.
“In the first inning, Webb was in trouble and couldn’t cash in right away,” Roberts said. “Then he settled down and we didn’t really threaten after that.”
This season’s lineup of MLB All-Stars and MVP candidates overwhelmed opposing pitchers. Before Wednesday night, the Dodgers led the National League in batting average, hits, home runs, doubles, runs scored, on-base percentage, slugging percentage, OPS and walks.
But they left 11 men on base and went 0-for-5 with runners in scoring position.
In the top of the 5th inning, the Dodgers had a second chance to get to Webb, but failed again. Ohtani had a two-out single to center and advanced to third base on a Freeman liner to right field, but Smith gave up a grounder to shortstop Casey Schmidt that left Ohtani 90 feet away for the Dodgers’ first run of the night.
“I knocked on the door a few times tonight, but I couldn’t get any cash out,” Smith said. “He never gives in. He’s got some really good stuff. He held on after the first inning and succeeded in escaping without giving up any runs.
“You just have to put your hat on and try to move on to the next inning. I thought we stuck to the plan. We’ve been really hard on him, he’s just not earned it in a few runs and that happens sometimes.”
What looked like a brief outing for Webb ended with no runs given up over six innings, giving up three hits and striking out three while walking three. The Dodgers were down 18 after Betts’ leadoff single before getting another hit from Webb. Webb averaged just over 14 pitches per five innings after the first inning, and two of his three strikeouts came in the final inning of the night.
Melvin said after the win, “It’s over 30 pitches, and I wonder if he’ll pitch 4 innings, let alone 6 innings.”
The Dodgers have a short flight to Los Angeles, but that first inning will be a disappointing one that leaves both Roberts and others reflecting on what could have been.
The Giants, at 20-25, are just 1.5 games out of the third NL wild card spot after Wednesday’s win. Webb became the Bulldog the Giants desperately needed, leading them to their first career regular season home win over Los Angeles. Perhaps they could build the perfect momentum before hosting the last-place but red-hot Colorado Rockies for three years. Enjoy the game at Oracle Park.
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