After the Dodgers lost in the series opener Friday night at Petco Park, and after Wander Suero joined the Dodgers bullpen from Oklahoma City, here are some stories to begin your weekend.
There were a few pieces on the Dodgers-Padres rivalry ahead of this weekend series in San Diego, including roundtables from Los Angeles Times writers, and at The Athletic, plus another at ESPN. But I also enjoyed this quote from Dave Roberts on how a rivalry gains steam, from Bill Plunkett at the Orange County Register: “I think a lot of times geography isn’t enough. There’s got to be some meaningful games played.”
James Outman’s memorable series at Wrigley Field was featured in Jayson Stark’s seminal Weird & Wild column at The Athletic, which noted Outman is the only Dodger ever with two two-homer games in the same series at Wrigley Field. Stark also noted the only visiting players 25 or younger with a pair of two-homer games in the same series at Wrigley Field were Willie Stargell in 1965 and RIchard Hidalgo in 2000.
A little more clarity on the SportsNet LA announcer pairings, from Bill Shaikin at the Los Angeles Times, including that Joe Davis will call 90 games for the Dodgers. Add in the 11 known Dodgers games exclusive on other networks this season plus more to be added in the second half, that gets into the “more than 50 home and road contests” range that the team noted Stephen Nelson would call when he was hired in January.
Prospect writers at MLB Pipeline identified a potential future closer in each of the 30 MLB organizations. Chosen for the Dodgers was left-hander Ronan Kopp, who has a 2.45 ERA and 26 strikeouts, and 11 walks in 14⅔ innings for High-A Great Lakes. Says MLB Pipeline: “He has better stuff than most southpaws, dealing at 95-99 mph with riding life on his fastball and flashing a plus mid-80s slider with sweep.”