Dodgers' Pitching Staff Sets MLB Record During Dominant Stretch
The Los Angeles Dodgers are showcasing their pitching prowess in a big way. Over the last five games, their starting rotation has set a new MLB record for strikeouts and opponent batting average, demonstrating their potential for a strong postseason push.
Dominant Performances Lead to Historic Feat
The Dodgers' impressive run began with Yoshinobu Yamamoto's near no-hitter against the Baltimore Orioles and culminated with Blake Snell's stellar outing against the Colorado Rockies. These performances, along with contributions from other starters, solidified the Dodgers' place in baseball history.
According to OptaSTATS, in the last five games, Dodgers starters have recorded 49 strikeouts while limiting opponents to a mere .091 batting average. No other team's starters have ever achieved 45 or more strikeouts with a sub-.100 opponent batting average in a five-game span.
Individual Performances Fuel the Success
Yamamoto initiated the dominant stretch against the Orioles, pitching 8.2 innings, allowing one run on one hit and two walks, and striking out 10. Although the Dodgers ultimately wasted the near no-hitter, Yamamoto's performance set the tone.
Clayton Kershaw followed with 5.2 innings against Baltimore, allowing two runs on four hits and one walk with eight strikeouts. Tyler Glasnow contributed a dominant performance of his own in the opener against the Rockies, racking up 11 strikeouts in seven hitless innings before being removed due to his pitch count.
Emmet Sheehan kept the momentum going, allowing one run on three hits and one walk while striking out nine in seven innings. Finally, Snell capped off the historic five-game stretch, bouncing back from a previous poor outing to pitch six scoreless innings, allowing two hits and two walks with 11 strikeouts, earning his fourth win of the season.
Looking Ahead
While injuries have plagued the Dodgers' pitching staff for much of the season, the group is now getting healthy and performing at a high level. The timing is ideal as the team looks towards the postseason. However, the challenge now is to sustain this dominance against stronger opponents than the Orioles and Rockies. Mookie Betts' grand slam adds to the team's overall performance, showing strength in both pitching and hitting.
