The Los Angeles Dodgers lost their fifth straight game on Tuesday, August 4, despite getting a quality start from their big new addition, Tarik Skubal.
There was a ton of hype about Skubal finally making his debut with the Dodgers, considering he was the big deadline target and the best team in baseball got him.
While much of baseball is in uproar over LA adding one of the best pitchers in the sport, the Dodgers have not been playing at their typical level this year.
They are in the midst of a skid, dropping six of their last seven, which includes six home games over their last homestand.
Skubal’s Dominance and Bullpen Woes
Skubal went six innings, allowing just two runs and striking out six. He looked stellar and rose to the moment of being a member of the Dodgers in this golden era.
His stuff was good enough to get a win, and with a relatively rested bullpen, the Dodgers were in a position to win.
The bullpen came into the game and struggled — Alex Vesia, Evan Phillips, and Edwin Diaz specifically.
They allowed a run or a hit that led to runs. Jack Dreyer, who came in after Diaz failed to get the third out in the eighth, got a three-pitch strikeout.
Diaz looked the most shaky of the bunch, allowing a home run and a hit, alongside a walk. His ERA went up to 9.35.
The offense goes cold
The offense did not show up other than Kyle Tucker’s bat, who had himself a solid 2-for-3 game with a home run.
The Dodgers totaled only four hits, and the former Cub accounted for half of those. LA was facing a lackluster Chicago pitching staff, but they failed to make them pay.
Over the last 13 games, the Dodgers have scored four runs or more in eight different games. The offense, overall, has remained in the top ten, but the pitching staff has been the cause of the current skid.
Tonight, it was the opposite: the offense had no answer, despite the Dodgers having the lefties to attack a righty starter.
The Dodgers get Eric Lauer on the mound to hopefully keep his perfect record as a starter alive against the Cubs for the series finale at 11:20 a.m. PST.
