Los Angeles Dodgers: Another former Athletic will carry LA to a win

The Los Angeles Dodgers won the team’s first game in Oakland since 2001 and look to complete the two-game sweep of the Athletics tonight.

The Los Angeles Dodgers won the team’s first game in the city of Oakland since 2001 last night with a 4-2 victory over the Athletics.

Paving the way towards victory for the Dodgers was former Athletic, Rich Hill. After a slow, injury-filled start to the season Hill has really picked up steam. The quirky southpaw was absolutely dealing, the only mistake being a two-run home run at the hands of Khris Davis.

Hill has been great against more than just his former ballclub, though. Overall, Hill has lowered his season ERA to 3.62 with a 1.48 ERA in his last four starts. In those four starts, Hill has struck out 26 hitters in 24 and one-third innings with an opposing 1.93 average.

The Dodger bats did their part with four runs. Not the most action-filled night, but certainly enough to get a nice, clean, victory.

Not only did the Dodgers’ offense do enough to get the win, it did enough to extend both of our Los Angeles Dodgers Beat the Streak hitting streaks.

Sarah went with Manny Machado, who went 1-5 on the night. Not the best night, especially considering he left seven men on base, but good enough for her.

As for me, I took a risk on Matt Kemp, hoping that he would have a big night to break out of his slump. While it was not a big night, he did deliver an RBI single in the seventh inning for his first base hit and to give the team a much-needed insurance run.

Sarah’s pick — Current streak 2: Cody Bellinger

My pick for tonight’s finale against the A’s is Cody Bellinger. Bellinger is finally breaking out of his slump, right at the perfect time.

Last night the Dodgers handed Sean Manaea his shortest start of the season and went on to win the game 4-2 with the help of a strong Rich Hill and a stellar bullpen. This is a different A’s team than in years past.

The Coliseum is once again vibrant with the cheers of Bay Area fans and the postseason isn’t exactly out of view. Tonight, however, the Dodgers face Mike Fiers, who recently cleared waivers from Detroit and is making his debut with Oakland tonight.

This isn’t Game 1 of the World Series; but with the division race as close as it is, would it be so bad if the Los Angeles Dodgers treated it like it was?

Jason’s pick — Current streak 2: Max Muncy

I am really living on the wild side with these last two predictions. Last night, I went with the hitter in the second-worst slump on the team, Matt Kemp. Tonight, I am going with the hitter in the worst slump, Max Muncy.

Muncy has been pretty bad of late, so bad that an extended cold spell may eventually lead to his removal from the everyday lineup. While he certainly is better than this, this cold streak does put into the light that his season thus far has been carried by one stellar month.

Dating back to a 0-7 night against the Philadelphia Phillies on July 24, Muncy four for his last 41, good enough for a batting average of .098. To make matters worse, two of those hits came in one night and Muncy, who is known for his patient approach, has just three walks compared to 23 strikeouts in that span.

Picking Muncy is not the smartest choice. However, consecutive off-days and playing the team that did not really give him a chance may motivate him. Let’s hope he can break out of that nasty cold spell.