MILWAUKEE — The sport plan, supervisor Dave Roberts mentioned Tuesday afternoon, was easy.
Because the Dodgers ready to face Milwaukee Brewers phenom Jacob Misiorowski, a hard-throwing and supremely gifted right-hander making simply his fifth MLB begin, the membership’s supervisor repeated one key a number of occasions throughout his pregame handle with reporters:
“Stress him as much as we can.”
Given Misiorowski’s inexperience, the concept was to work lengthy at-bats, drive up his pitch rely and “be mindful of [making] quick outs,” Roberts mentioned.
The Brewers’ Jacob Misiorowski shouts in the course of the sixth inning of a recreation towards the Dodgers on Tuesday in Milwaukee.
(Aaron Gash / Related Press)
“If he’s got to keep repeating pitches, there might be a way for some base hits, some walks,” he added. “Again, create stress, and hopefully get a couple big hits.”
A giant hit got here early, with Shohei Ohtani main off the sport together with his thirty first residence run of the season. However after that, the one stress evident at American Household Subject on Tuesday got here from the Dodgers’ lineup, which struck out 12 occasions towards Misiorowski throughout a 3-1 loss to the Brewers. It was the Dodgers’ fifth loss in a row.
The Ks got here shortly following Ohtani’s early blast (his ninth leadoff residence run of the season, and one which set a Dodgers document for whole residence runs earlier than the All-Star break).
Mookie Betts fanned on a slider within the subsequent at-bat. Freddie Freeman whiffed on a curveball after him. Andy Pages froze on a 100.8 mph fastball, considered one of 21 triple-digit pitches Misiorowski uncorked from his wiry 6-foot-7, 197-pound body.
Misiorowski struck out three extra batters within the second to strand a two-out Dalton Dashing single. He labored round Miguel Rojas’ leadoff double within the third with two extra punch-outs, getting Ohtani with a curveball this time and Freeman with the identical pitch after a beneficiant strike name acquired the rely full.
From there, the Dodgers didn’t stress Misiorowski once more till the sixth, when Ohtani drew a leadoff stroll and Betts slapped a single by means of the infield. With one out, nonetheless, Ohtani was thrown out on the plate making an attempt to attain from third on Pages’ chopper up the road. Then Michael Conforto grounded out to first to retire the aspect, sending Misiorowski skipping again to the dugout with a couple of thumps of his chest on the finish of a six-inning, one-run begin that noticed all 12 strikeouts come within the first 5 frames (tying probably the most strikeouts by any MLB pitcher within the first 5 innings of a recreation since 2008).
Reverse Misiorowski, Dodgers veteran Clayton Kershaw produced a stable six-inning, two-run begin in a vastly completely different manner. Together with his fastball nonetheless topping out at 90 mph, and the 37-year-old managing solely three strikeouts in his first begin since becoming a member of the three,000 membership final week, Kershaw as a substitute navigated the Brewers with a string of soppy contact.
The one drawback: The Brewers nonetheless discovered a solution to construct a rally within the backside of the fourth.
After singling on a swinging bunt up the third final analysis his first time up, Milwaukee catcher William Contreras did the identical factor to guide off the inning. Then Jackson Chourio beat the shift on a floor ball the opposite manner.
That arrange Andrew Vaughn for a line-drive single to heart, tying the rating. Within the subsequent at-bat, Isaac Collins additionally discovered a gap within the infield, sneaking one other ground-ball single between Betts and Rojas on the left aspect of the infield to provide Milwaukee a 2-1 lead.
Even after Misiorowski departed, a shorthanded Dodgers lineup (which was as soon as once more with out injured veterans Teoscar Hernández and Tommy Edman, in addition to main catcher Will Smith on a scheduled off day) couldn’t claw its manner again.
The Brewers’ bullpen retired all 9 batters it confronted. Sal Frelick took Kirby Yates deep for an insurance coverage run within the eighth. And on a day the Dodgers supposed to create stress, they have been as a substitute coping with the headache of a season-long five-game dropping streak.
