Los Angeles Dodgers: Rich Hill on the bump to sweep Phillies

The Los Angeles Dodgers are firing on all cylinders right now and are looking a sweep of the Philadelphia Phillies right in the face.

The Los Angeles Dodgers have been remarkable this season and their good performances have continued into what was one of the biggest challenges of the season.

The Dodgers knew that hosting the Philadelphia Phillies in a three-game home series was going to be a challenge. While they have home-field advantage, the Phillies are one of the biggest competitors for the National League Pennant and this would serve as a nice gauge on where the Dodgers are relative to Philly.

And so far, the Dodgers have delivered, beating the Phillies in the first two games of the series. They have not been dominant wins per se, but both games were great as the Dodgers hit four home runs in the first game and walked it off in the second.

The pitching has been great and the offense has come up when it mattered. All in all, sweeping the Phillies on Sunday would be a huge message to the rest of the Major Leagues if they haven’t already taken notice.

On the bump for the Dodgers is none other than Rich Hill, the most entertaining starting pitcher to watch arguably in all of baseball. Los Angeles appears to have the upper hand in pitching as well, as taking the mound for the Phillies is Nick Pivetta and his 7.71 ERA.

A young, right-handed starting pitcher with a high ERA dangles like bait for the Dodgers’ offense to attack like sharks. As part of our Los Angeles Dodgers Beat the Streak series, this is who we think can get at least one base hit.

Jason’s pick (Current streak: 9): Cody Bellinger

Yesterday I bragged about how I built up a relatively long hitting streak without really having to rely on Cody Bellinger, who ironically enters Sunday with a nine-game hitting streak as well.

After bragging about not having to over-use the best hitter in baseball this year, I am going to go with him for a second day and a row. I have not picked a player a second day in a row after they extended my streak all season.

While I like mixing it up, it is hard to deny the matchup that Bellinger has against Pivetta. Pivetta is a young right-hander who is going to make mistakes and who lets up runs at a high rate. Bellinger is someone who is punishing everyone that throws him a mistake who is also hitting over .400 against right-handed pitching this season.

It would be an absolute shock if Bellinger does not get at least one base hit against Pivetta today. With it being a beautiful day game, the ball will fly a bit farther and Bellinger could have yet another massive game.