Before Labor Day has even arrived, there will be shades of the fall when the Baltimore Orioles visit the Los Angeles Dodgers for a three-game series that starts on Tuesday.
At 78-53, the Dodgers will carry the best record in the major leagues into the matchup, while the 76-56 Orioles have the second-best record in the American League.
The Dodgers held a three-game lead over the Arizona Diamondbacks in the National League West at the start of play Monday, while the Orioles were 1 1/2 games behind the first-place New York Yankees in the AL East.
Even with top starters like Tyler Glasnow and Yoshinobu Yamamoto on the injured list, the Dodgers have still won six of their past seven games and are 12-4 since Aug. 9. Part of the reason for their recent success is the addition of right-hander Jack Flaherty at the trade deadline.
Flaherty (10-5, 3.00 ERA), who is scheduled to start on Tuesday, has taken the mound four times since joining Los Angeles from the Detroit Tigers and is 3-0 with a 3.22 ERA during that span. He will be making his first career start against the Orioles, with whom he played for two months in 2023 after a trade.
Also aiding the Dodgers’ resurgence has been the return of key components to the offense. Mookie Betts is back after recovering from a broken hand, and Max Muncy is playing again after being away for three months because of an oblique injury.
Muncy hit home runs in the first two games of his return last week, and Betts hit a go-ahead two-run homer in the eighth inning of a 3-1 victory over the Tampa Bay Rays on Sunday. While Shohei Ohtani continues to deliver, entering the 40-40 club on Friday, Freddie Freeman is playing through a hairline fracture in the middle finger of his right hand.
“It’s good to have everybody back, but we also have to perform and that’s the biggest thing,” Betts said after Sunday’s victory. “It doesn’t really matter what kind of team you have assembled, you have to perform, and right now we’re doing OK, but we have to do it when it matters.”
The Orioles will send left-hander Cole Irvin (6-5, 4.82) to the mound for the series opener. Irvin, a native of nearby Anaheim, Calif., returned to the starting rotation last Wednesday after five consecutive relief appearances and gave up two runs on five hits over 4 1/3 innings against the New York Mets. He did not factor into the decision in that outing.
In two career relief appearances against Los Angeles, Irvin is 0-0 with a 4.70 ERA.
Baltimore is trying to get unlocked after a run of mediocre play since the All-Star break, going 18-18 with a 4-6 record since Aug. 16. The Orioles fell 6-3 to the Houston Astros on Sunday, collecting just two hits.
First baseman Ryan Mountcastle (wrist) went on the injured list on Monday, while center fielder Cedric Mullins (quad) has missed the past two games.
Since returning to the major leagues on July 31, Baltimore rookie Jackson Holliday has five home runs and 18 RBIs in 24 games, with 26 strikeouts.
“We all know that we have the talent,” Orioles third baseman Ramon Urias told reporters Sunday. “So I think we just have to keep the focus.”
Urias is batting .345 with three home runs and 11 RBIs over his past 10 games.
–Field Level Media
