Dodgers’ Clayton Kershaw Says It’s Time To Panic
By Jamaal Artis
Having pitched eight innings giving up one run, striking out ten, and walking none, Clayton Kershaw stayed in the dugout for the ninth inning allowing closer Kenley Jansen to try and finish the Dodgers Sunday afternoon game against the Houston Astros.
After going two years without losing three games in a row, Jansen was tasked with stopping the Dodgers four game losing streak, their second one in the last two weeks. Unlike the rest of the bullpen Jansen had proven himself to be the most reliable pitcher of the much maligned Dodgers bullpen. Despite spending some time on the disabled list, Jansen was a perfect 17-17 when coming in for a save.
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Unfortunately in the all too familiar for Dodgers fans the bullpen blew it as Jansen gave up a leadoff single to Astros star rookie Carlos Correa, who came around to score on a two out RBI single by Marwin Gonzalez sending the game into extra innings. Dodgers reliever Chris Hatcher put the capper on the bullpen implosion by giving up a walk-off home run in the 10th inning to the Astros Jason Castro extending the Dodgers losing streak to five games.
After the game Kershaw probably upset after having watched the bullpen blow another game showed the kind of emotion people are unaccustomed to seeing from him.
"“I hope we’re panicking a little bit,” Kershaw said. “I think panic’s a good thing to a certain extent. It’s August whatever-it-is, and we’ve got five weeks or whatever it is, too. There needs to be a sense of urgency. Maybe that’s better to say it than panic, but I feel like we’ve got to start playing like that.”"
I have news for the Dodgers, fans are in panic mode! Maybe the players can exclaim how it’s a long season and anything can happen. But to most fans the Dodgers should have some urgency because if they’re not careful there will be a lot of changes coming.
Having seen the Dodgers get swept by the last place Oakland Athletics and no-hit by the Astros, the Dodgers anemic hitting and shaky bullpen just isn’t going to cut it anymore. Fortunately for the Dodgers while they’ve gone 9-11 in August, the second place San Francisco Giants have only been able to go 10-12, keeping the Dodgers in first place.
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Unfortunately for the Dodgers if they don’t start playing with the kind of urgency Kershaw was talking about they may either have a slim lead or none at all in September when they face their division rivals seven times before the season is over. A team they’ve only beaten 3 out of 12 times this year, if the Dodgers are going to get past their rivals the bullpen can no longer play with a league worst 4.20 ERA, the batters can not hit .256 and expect to get into the playoffs as they have in August.
If the Dodgers are going to play with urgency it’s going to have to be a team effort, the batters have to give the starters leads, the bullpen has to hold on to the leads, and the team can’t blow wins when their two aces pitch. For fans in a panic still waiting to see the Dodgers reach their first World Series in 27 years, just look to last years Giants who finished last season going 26-41 on their way to their third title in five years.