The Dodgers are heading into Thursday’s finale with no margin for error after dropping the first two games of their series against the Braves by one run apiece. Atlanta has found late answers in both contests, including Wednesday night’s walk-off single that once again left Tanner Scott on the wrong end of the biggest swing.
Dave Roberts didn’t hide the mood afterward.
“This was a tough one. I thought we had a really good chance to win this game,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said after Wednesday's game.
“I just think that it’s a tough loss. And then obviously you’re staring down Chris Sale tomorrow to salvage the series, so it’s certainly not a comfortable position.
But we’re gonna go out there and try to salvage the series.”
That loss leaves Los Angeles with only a two-game cushion over Atlanta for the No. 2 seed in the National League, the spot that comes with a first-round bye. The Braves also hold the season tiebreaker after taking four of five meetings from the Dodgers this year, so the pressure in this one sits squarely on LA.
The matchup doesn’t exactly offer much relief for a Dodgers offense that has struggled to get going. Atlanta is sending Chris Sale to the mound, and the left-hander has been excellent all season. He comes in at 12-9 with a 2.20 ERA and 166 strikeouts across 135 innings, and he’s been just as sharp in the second half with a 2.19 ERA and 49 strikeouts in six starts.
Sale has already seen the Dodgers once this year, and that outing came on May 8, when he allowed three runs, two earned, over seven innings in Atlanta’s lone loss to Los Angeles this season.
The Dodgers will counter with Yoshinobu Yamamoto, who has quietly put together a strong year of his own. The right-hander is 12-7 with a 2.61 ERA and 145 strikeouts in 151.2 innings, and he’s been even better since the All-Star break, posting a 1.98 ERA over 41 innings in six starts.
Los Angeles is also making some noticeable changes to the lineup with Sale on the hill. Kyle Tucker and Max Muncy are out, while the Dodgers have shuffled the order with Edman moving into the second spot, Betts batting third, and Freeman sliding up to cleanup.
First pitch for Dodgers-Braves on Thursday, Aug. 27 is set for 4:15 p.m. PT/7:15 p.m.
ET. The game will air on SportsNet LA, FS1 and in the MLB app.
It will also be carried on the radio by AM570 in English and KTNQ 1020 AM in Spanish.
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For a team that has been trying to get Sasaki settled in, any interruption matters, especially one that raises questions about his hand. The Dodgers will be watching closely to see whether this is a brief setback or the kind of issue that lingers, because their rotation picture is already important enough without adding another concern around one of their most closely followed young arms. [Read more 🡒]