Brett Anderson Frustrated With Start; Praised Dodgers Bullpen

Coming into Monday, the Los Angeles Dodgers understood that the three-game series against the San Francisco Giants was the biggest of the season. Entering with a 3.5 game lead, anything could happen in just a matter of three games. After it was all said and done, the Dodgers came out victorious in the 14th inning on an Adrian Gonzalez single with the bases loaded.

Coming into the game, starter Brett Anderson stated that the start on Monday was something that he was looking forward to. The southpaw pitcher delivered five innings, allowing six hits and three earned runs before being lifted. The 27-year-old pitcher only allowed the Giants to score in the third inning, with the first run coming from a Brandon Belt single with the bases loaded. With two outs, Marlon Byrd hit a slow roller towards second base, but the Dodgers were shifted over for the right-handed hitter and two runs scored as Chase Utley stopped the ball from going into the outfield.

After the game, Anderson reflected on the allowed hit and stated that he wasn’t happy with the results. “For me, personally, it probably was the most frustrating game I have ever pitched,” Anderson said. “Make a pitch to Posey and then make a pitch to Byrd to get out of the inning and the shift kind of got me there.”

Although the six-year player wasn’t thrilled about his particular outing, he did say that the bigger goal in mind was accomplished. “You can’t ask for a better team win,” the southpaw answered. “At the end of these long games, with everybody playing, the bullpen was absolutely tremendous. Hopefully, this game can catapult us into two more good games.”

In nine innings pitched, the group of relievers allowed only one run, coming from Juan Nicasio in the eighth inning. Once the game went to extra innings, pitchers Chris Hatcher and Jim Johnson threw a combined five shutout innings of relief, giving the Dodgers multiple opportunities to win the game.

Anderson was asked to describe the performance of the bullpen and handed out some much-deserved respect. “That was unbelievable. I think Hatcher probably threw much better than I did,” Anderson joked. “Tip your caps to those guys. They did a tremendous job against a good team, good players and like I said, you can’t ask for a better win going forward with our two horses.”

The pitcher does make a great point, as Zack Greinke and Clayton Kershaw are scheduled to finish out the three-game series. The momentum of the extended division game could be exactly what this Dodger team needs heading into Tuesday, with the chance to earn a series victory and extend the lead further going into September.