Dodgers wasting perfect opportunities to re-take NL West

Just a few weeks ago, it seemed like the Dodgers would never break out of the standings limbo.

The team would win a game but before their fans had the chance to celebrate properly, they would look up to the scoreboard to see the Giants walking away victorious from their own contest.

They just couldn’t gain any ground on a team playing at astratosphericlevel for most of the year, with no signs of coming down anytime soon either.

Added frustration came with the fact that the Dodgers’ record was perfectly on track with its the previous three years that saw them produce NL West Division titles.

What more could they do?

But then the MLB All-Star Break came and went and with it seemed to go the Giants’ mojo.

Dodgers fans, on the heels of thenewsthat they may have seen the last ofClayton Kershawfor the season, have found something to cheer about — that they can regain the NL West lead sooner than most thought possible and without theirMVPfront-runner.

Then Cardinals second basemanJedd Gyorko, the last hitter set for Jansen to retire, stepped up to the plate and sailed a long one into the stands at Busch Stadium on the first pitch by the closer.

Gyorko tied the game at 3-3, a stalemate that would last 7 more innings untilMatt Adamsblasted another home run in the16th inningto give St. Louis the 4-3 victory.

It’s a different kind of frustration for Dodgers fans, then.

The team thatdismantledtheunbeatenStephen Strasburgjust a few days prior and the team that, despite its rampantinjuriesthroughout the season, has kept pace with thesecond-bestteam in baseball has not made more of its opportunities to retake the NL West lead.

During the Giants’ losing streak, the Dodgers have lost three one-run games, two of which went into extra innings as a result of a blown save by Jansen.

But one would be remiss to blame those two losses solely on Jansen.

Despite the bright spots throughout Friday night, including Corey Seager’sfour-hitnight return and the continued hot streaks ofJustin TurnerandHowie Kendrick, the Dodgers simply did, and have not, finished the job when they needed to.

In the series opener, the team went 1-for-13 with RISP and left 13 men on the bases. The night would be indicative of the season’s success with RISP as a whole.

Not only do the Dodgers sit in the bottom half of batting average with RISP amongall teams, it now ranks 29th in coming through with men on the bases on two outs recorded.

“I think it’s just guys trying to do too much, and getting out of their approaches,” Manager Dave Robertstoldthe LA Times.

It’s the kind of clutch hitting that we have seen throughout the season.

TakeTrayce Thompson‘s two walk-off home runs this season. OrYasiel Puig‘s memorable walk-off little league home run in the prior series against the Washington Nationals.

It’s moments like these that show the team isn’t lacking in ability, but consistency. Whether they can find it now before the Giants regain their old form is the real issue.

The Dodgers go into Saturday for theirsecondgame of the series against the Cardinals hoping to establish such consistency that could just be the single key to their return to the top of the division.

And hopefully, come September, Dodgers fans won’t find themselves looking back on certain games, innings, or even at bats wondering what could have been had the results been slightly different.

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