The Dodgers arrive in Arizona with a lot on the line Friday night, and the lineup tells the story: this is a team trying to stop the bleeding before a series that could reshape the National League West race.
Los Angeles and Arizona open a three-game set at Chase Field, with the Dodgers holding a 69-46 record and an 8.5-game cushion over the Diamondbacks, who sit at 61-55. The gap still favors LA, but the timing matters. The Dodgers have dropped six straight, and after being swept in back-to-back series, they need to get back in the win column fast.
Arizona has suddenly made the division picture more interesting, and if the Diamondbacks want any real shot at catching the Dodgers, they likely need to sweep this weekend. Even beyond the standings, this matchup carries another layer: the teams have split their first 10 meetings of the season, so whoever wins this series takes the season series and the tiebreaker.
Roki Sasaki gets the ball for Los Angeles against Arizona right-hander Merrill Kelly.
Sasaki is set for his 20th start of the year and will hit the 100-inning mark after the first frame. He enters with a 4.64 ERA and 101 strikeouts in 99 innings, but he’s been locked in since the All-Star break, giving up just three earned runs over 18 innings for a 1.50 ERA.
Kelly comes in at 8-9 with a 5.40 ERA over 20 starts and 114.1 innings. He was rolling through July, going 3-0 with a 1.95 ERA across 27.2 innings, but his first outing in August went sideways when he allowed five runs on eight hits over five innings against the Cleveland Guardians.
Freeman, who exited Wednesday’s game after getting hit on the hand, is back in the lineup, as expected.
First pitch for Los Angeles Dodgers vs. Arizona Diamondbacks on Friday, Aug. 7 is 6:40 p.m.
PT/9:40 p.m. ET.
The game will be broadcast on SportsNet LA and in the MLB app.
The game will be broadcast on the radio on AM570 (in English) and KTNQ 1020 AM (in Spanish).
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