PHOENIX –– For most of this season, the Dodgers have been watching the San Diego Padres in their rear-view mirror.
After Monday night, they might need to make sure the Arizona Diamondbacks are not sneaking up in their blind spot.
In the first of a four-game series at Chase Field, the Dodgers lost 4-1 to a resurgent D-backs team, which has won 15 of its last 22 games to move within a half-game of the Padres for second place in the National League West.
Neither division rival is exactly pushing the Dodgers right now. Even with Monday’s win, the D-backs remain 5 ½ games back in the NL West race.
But this week’s series does provide an opportunity for Arizona, which has recovered from a 17-20 start behind an expectedly good offense and, unexpectedly, an even better pitching staff in recent weeks.
“They’re resilient, they’re athletic, they can defend … and they’re playing great baseball,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said before first pitch Monday.
In the nine innings that followed, that remained the case.
Left-hander Eduardo Rodriguez flummoxed the Dodgers over six one-run innings, continuing his bounce-back campaign by escaping a couple early jams.
In the top of the second, the Dodgers had two aboard with no outs, and the bases loaded with two outs, but came up empty. In the third, they had runners on second and third after back-to-back doubles from Shohei Ohtani (who had three hits on the night) and Andy Pages, but managed just one run on a Freddie Freeman grounder.
After that, the Dodgers (38-22) wouldn’t put another runner in scoring position –– getting robbed of a couple hits along the way by diving snags from Dbacks outfielder Jorge Barrosa in center.
“It certainly changes the complexion of those innings,” Roberts said of the catches. “That could have been a difference maker.”
The D-backs 32-27, meanwhile, erased the early deficit on solo home runs from Tommy Troy and Nolan Arenado in the sixth and seventh innings, then a backbreaking two-run blast from Ketel Marte in the eighth.
Down the stretch, a once-shaky D-backs bullpen also closed the door with three shutout innings.
And suddenly, this early June series feels a little extra important.
What it means
For the first time in three weeks, the Dodgers have dropped two of three games.
And in both defeats, lackluster offense was to blame.
It’s hardly time to worry yet, with the Dodgers still averaging nearly six runs per game during a 14-4 stretch going back to May 13.
But even after getting 6 ⅓ strong innings from Emmet Sheehan, who gave up just two runs to lower his ERA to 4.50, their offense couldn’t get him off the hook for the loss.
“I thought we had some good at-bats and barrelled up some balls,” outfielder Kyle Tucker said. “But they made some nice plays and we just weren’t able to get the runs across, so just kind of how it goes sometimes.”
Who’s hot
Sheehan, who finally rediscovered his typical fastball velocity.
All year, the right-hander has struggled to dial up his heater, which had fallen from averaging 95.6 mph last season to 94.2 mph this year. But on Monday, it was up nearly two ticks, sitting at season-best 95.9 mph and topping out at a season-high 97.2 mph.
The extra life helped Sheehan be extra efficient in what matched his longest start of the campaign. After giving up a double to Corbin Carroll in the first inning, he retired his next 15 in a row on just 62 throws. For only the second time this year, he pitched into the seventh.
The only problem with Sheehan’s night were two mistakes that went over the fence. In the sixth, he left a 1-0 heater down the middle to Troy, who drove it out to left for his first career home run. In the seventh, Sheehan hung a first-pitch slider to Arenado, who launched another solo blast that chased Sheehan from the game.
Who’s not
Tucker, once again.
Coming off a two-hit game on Sunday that the Dodgers were hoping had snapped his previous 1-for-16 slump, the $240 million offseason signing went hitless once again on Monday, drawing an eight-pitch walk his first time up before stumbling to an 0-for-3 performance.
“I just need to do it more consistently everyday, rather than just every now and then,” Tucker said of his inconsistent production. “So, just come back tomorrow and try to get better at it.”
Tucker’s batting average on the season is now down to .238, and his OPS to .722. Among the team’s everyday players, only Mookie Betts has worse numbers (and he missed a month with an oblique strain).
Up next
The Dodgers will look to bounce back on Tuesday, when Eric Lauer will take the mound for his second start with the team. He’ll face right-hander Michael Soroka (7-2, 3.25 ERA).
