Dodgers Begin Their Road Trip With A Loss To The Cubs

As you look at the standings in the NL West, you’ll see that the Dodgers are on top with the Giants trailing by only 1.5 games back, as they avoided a 3-game sweep and the lead in the NL West as they trounced the Giants last night.

Tonight the Dodgers begin their ten-game road trip in Wrigley Field as they begin the four-game series against the Chicago Cubs, who just beat the Minnesota Twins twice out of a three-game series, outscoring the Twins 12-1 in the last two games.

The Dodgers hand the ball over to their ace Clayton Kershaw, who has gotten back to his dominate ways in the month of June with a record 0f 2-1, 1.95 ERA, 39 strikeouts, and 7 walks.

With Enrique Hernandez getting the start today for Jimmy Rollins at shortstop, he continued the Dodgers fun from last night, as he launched Tsuyoshi Wada ball over the left field wall for his third homerun of the season.

Alongside a 1-0 Dodgers lead over the Cubs heading into the bottom of the third, the Cubs retook the lead with Kris Bryant ninth homerun of the season, with a deep 2-run homer to right field, 2-1 Cubs lead.

In the sixth inning, the game had about a 25 minute game delay due to some of the lights going out at Wrigley Field, which got Clayton Kershaw flamed up as the Cubs Manager, Joe Maddon kept arguing with the umpire’s about not continuing play.

The game soon continued, but Maddon told the umpire’s that the Cubs would be playing under protest.

MLB Official Rules: 4.00 Starting and Ending a Game

"Each league shall adopt rules governing procedure for protesting a game, when a manager claims that an umpire’s decision is in violation of these rules.No protest shall ever be permitted on judgment decisions by the umpire. In all protested games, the decision of the League President shall be final.Even if it is held that the protested decision violated the rules, no replay of the game will be ordered unless in the opinion of the League President the violation adversely affected the protesting team’s chances of winning the game.Rule 4.19 Comment: Whenever a manager protests a game because of alleged misapplication of the rules the protest will not be recognized unless the umpires are notified at the time the play under protest occurs and before the next pitch, play or attempted play. A protest arising on a game-ending play may be filed until 12 noon the following day with the league office.Rule 4.19 – Protesting Games"

In the following inning, the Cubs Matt Szczur (who was promoted from Triple-A Iowa to start in left field today) hit his first homerun of the season. Extending the lead for the Cubs, from two to three, and disembarking the Cubs protest.

Matt Szczur homerun was Kershaw’s eleventh homerun given this year (Kris Bryant’s homerun was Kershaw’s tenth homerun). He’s only given up nine homeruns last season.

To make things in more interesting, the rain started to fall over Wrigley field in the top of the eighth inning with the Dodgers due up, but the rain was more interesting to watch then the Dodgers at bats.

With the game leaning towards a Cubs win, Kris Bryant had some more hitting to do, as he decided to put the cherry on top of the sundae. As he blasted his second homerun of the game, which was his first career multi-homerun game.

As Kris Bryant was giving the Cubs a show with his bat. Joc Pederson wanted to show the Cubs fans, and MLB fans why he should be this year’s “Rookie of the Year” as he hit his nineteenth homerun of the season.

WP: Travis Wood (2-1)

LP: Clayton Kershaw (5-5)