Los Angeles @ San Diego preview
PETCO Park
Last Meeting ( Mar 30, 2014 ) LA Dodgers 1, San Diego 3
The Los Angeles Dodgers may only be three games into their season, but their bullpen has already given them cause for concern. The Dodgers, who continue their three-game road series with the San Diego Padres on Tuesday, made relief pitching a focus of their offseason – highlighted by the re-signing of Brian Wilson. Los Angeles gave up five runs in relief in its final game in Australia against the Arizona Diamondbacks on March 22, and watched Wilson implode Sunday.
While the Dodgers’ starters (Clayton Kershaw and Hyun-Jin Ryu) have combined for a 0.48 ERA in 18 2/3 innings in three games, the bullpen has walked nine batters and posted an 8.59 ERA. Conversely, the Padres’ relievers were nearly flawless in Sunday’s season-opening 3-1 win over Los Angeles and got the boost they needed when Seth Smith – the left-handed bat off the bench the team lacked last season – belted a pinch-hit homer off Wilson to spark a three-run eighth inning. “One of the reasons we needed that left-handed bat is for situations like tonight,” Padres manager Bud Black told the San Diego Union-Tribune.
TV: 6:40 p.m. ET, SportsNet Los Angeles, FSN San Diego
PITCHING MATCHUP: Dodgers LH Zack Greinke (2013: 15-4, 2.63 ERA) vs. Padres RH Ian Kennedy (2013: 7-10, 4.91)
Greinke strained his right calf early in camp and did not travel with the team to Australia for its season-opening trip, but convinced the team he was ready to rejoin the rotation after a strong six-inning spring outing last week. The 2009 American League Cy Young Award winner finished the 2013 regular season with a flurry, going 7-1 after July 30 while not allowing more than two runs in any of his last 12 turns. Greinke dominated San Diego last season as well, going 2-0 with a 1.44 ERA in four starts.
Kennedy, acquired at the trade deadline from the Diamondbacks last season, saw his marginal improvement with the Padres, going 4-2 with a 4.24 ERA in August and September (3-8 with a 5.23 ERA prior to the trade). The 29-year-old California native won four of his six home outings following the trade and owns a 7-2 record with a 2.41 ERA in 12 all-time starts at Petco Park. He did not fare nearly as well against the Dodgers last season, however, going 0-2 with a 6.62 ERA in three turns.
WALK-OFFS
1. The last time Greinke opposed Kennedy was June 11, when the latter – as a member of the Diamondbacks – hit the former with a high pitch that set off a brawl that resulted in six ejections.
2. Wilson surrendered three runs Sunday, two more than he allowed over 19 2/3 innings in 2013 (including postseason) after making his Dodgers debut on Aug. 22.
3. Black stated Sunday that LF Carlos Quentin’s stint on the disabled list due to left knee soreness will last past April 10, the day he would be eligible to return.
PREDICTION: Dodgers 5, Padres 2