It's been a tough go for the defending champs.
The wheels fell off for the Los Angeles Dodgers on Tuesday night, and the chaos unfolded quickly.
In the seventh inning, Edgardo Henriquez charged a soft grounder, mishandled it, then launched a wild throw past first base and down the right field line. All three Minnesota Twins runners came around to score. Just like that, the game unraveled in a chorus of boos inside Dodger Stadium.
Seventh-inning collapse sinks Dodgers yet again
The Dodgers bullpen gave up six runs over the final two frames and watched another winnable game slip away. Minnesota walked out with a 10-7 win. For Los Angeles, it marked their 11th loss in the last 14 games.
Manager Dave Roberts didn’t hold back.
“It better be rock bottom,” he said.
Injury list grows longer
Before the game even began, the Dodgers lost reliever Tanner Scott to the injured list with elbow inflammation. Postgame scans revealed his UCL was intact, but his return date is still up in the air. That news adds him to an already massive list of missing arms: Blake Treinen, Michael Kopech, Brusdar Graterol, and Evan Phillips, the latter recovering from Tommy John surgery.
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Another name could be added soon. Ben Casparius exited in the sixth inning with a calf cramp and will undergo an MRI. He faced four batters, walking three and giving up a double. His struggles continued a rough summer stretch after a strong start to the year.
Relievers Will Klein and Henriquez tried to patch things together in the seventh but only made things worse. Klein walked the bases loaded before getting pulled. Henriquez, moments later, committed the crushing error that cleared the bases and gave Minnesota a four-run lead.
Bullpen falling apart at the seams
The Dodgers' bullpen has thrown more innings than any team in baseball this season, nearly 45 more than the next closest club. But the results haven’t matched the workload. LA’s relievers sit near the bottom of the league in ERA, WHIP, and opponent OPS.
General manager Brandon Gomes remains hopeful. He expects Treinen back by the end of the month, with Kopech and Graterol to follow. The club still believes in the talent they have, assuming they can get healthy.
Still, with the trade deadline looming in just over a week, Los Angeles is expected to hunt for high-leverage bullpen arms. The internal options aren’t cutting it.
The Dodgers lead in the National League West is down to 3.5 games.
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Category: Baseball
