Editorials

Anderson, Ellis Not Panicking Over Dodgers’ Trouble With Clinching NL West

Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY Sports
Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY Sports

The Los Angeles Dodgers began their final road trip of the season, a seven-game jaunt, on Friday in Colorado with their magic number to clinch the National League West division at only three games.

Entering play Sunday, that number now sits at two, though not by anything the Dodgers done; only a San Francisco Giants loss on Friday night nudged Los Angeles toward a third consecutive NL West title. The Dodgers found themselves in an early deficit Saturday at Coors Field as Brett Anderson labored through a four-run first inning.



Anderson pitched only four innings and exited with the Dodgers trailing, 6-2. They managed to fight their way back into the game, tying it in the sixth inning, but losing on Carlos Gonzalez’s walk-off home run in the ninth.

After another loss and frustrating outing on a personal level, Anderson said the Dodgers aren’t in a panic over their inability to sew up the division, according to Bill Plunkett of the OC Register:

You’d like to clinch it as soon as possible,” Dodgers starter Brett Anderson said. “But destiny’s in our own hands. … Nobody’s in panic mode or getting impatient. We just have to go out and play better.”

A.J. Ellis shared a similar sentiment and appears to be comfortable with the prospect the Dodgers may clinch the NL West at AT&T Park:

I think we’re all confident in saying it’s going to happen,” Ellis said. “We want to win our way in. Hopefully, we can win here tomorrow and Oakland can beat the Giants. If not, we’ve got to do it on their field there – which would be sweet as well.”

The Dodgers are just 4-10 in their last 10 games and while they remain in the driver’s seat for a division, crown the New York Mets now hold a half-game lead for home-field advantage in the expected NL Division Series.

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