Trending Up, Trending Down: Justin Turner Among Struggling Dodgers
Trending Up:
Clayton Kershaw: In a week where the offense had trouble manufacturing runs, Kershaw still dominated his opponents.
Taking the mound against the Athletics and Astros, he combined for 15 innings while allowing 14 baserunners (12 hits, two walks) and striking out 17 batters. As a result, his ERA and FIP for the season diminished to 2.29 and 2.12, respectively.
Zack Greinke: It wasn’t a shutout, but Greinke still turned in another quality start.
In seven innings against the Astros, he allowed just three hits (two home runs) and three earned runs while striking out five. He was tabbed with a tough-luck loss, but his ERA only slightly increased to 1.67 while his WHIP decreased to 0.85.
Brett Anderson: Making one start against the Astros last week, Anderson registered another quality start.
In six innings pitched, he allowed seven hits (two home runs) and three earned runs while striking out five. With the nice outing, he managed to lower his ERA for the season to 3.52.
Honorable Mentions:
A.J. Ellis: Picking up two starts last week, Ellis reached base safely in seven of nine plate appearances (one home run, one double, four walks).
Andre Ethier: Totaling 13 plate appearances in five games (three starts), Ethier knocked four hits and drew a walk — good for a .385 on-base percentage.
Alex Wood: Though he only accumulated 5.2 innings against the Athletics, Wood allowed only three earned runs and five hits and missed out on a quality start by just one third of an inning.
[divide]Zack Greinke On Competing With Clayton Kershaw
sabermetrics seems to be a good way to build a team that can make the playoffs but can’t win against quality opponents. There has to be some balance between the advanced stats and say the ability to hit safely 30% of the time and the ability to drive in runs. Sabermetrics are useful but the old school stats still matter.
it seems like this team has been back and forth for quite some time now. I think we can expect a big hot streak right after this. If not, i think they’ll struggle to make the playoffs.