Oakland: A little over a month has passed since Gavin Stone’s rookie season came to an end. The right-hander, 25, produced a complete game shutout on June 26 at Guaranteed Rate Field, capping off an incredible first half. With an ERA of 2.73, there was merit to the arguments that he ought to be an All-Star. The right-hander for the Los Angeles Dodgers extended his team’s division lead to 8 1/2 games.
They had fought for the majority of the previous month and were both seriously injured. Still, Stone was a welcome surprise.
For the struggling Dodgers, that has also vanished as they were defeated 6-5 by the Oakland Athletics on Friday night, ending their winning streak at six games on the road and six in their previous eight games.
Teoscar Hernández’s home run off Oakland’s Joey Estes gave them a two-run lead in the first inning. After that, they did not get on base again until the sixth inning, and they did not get another hit until the seventh. Stone began to exhibit the swing-and-miss stuff that had been avoiding him for the past month, but he sat in the dugout watching ahead as Brent Rooker hit a two-run home run off Joe Kelly to put the game virtually out of his reach.
The damage was done even after Shohei Ohtani’s three-run blast in the ninth inning had the Dodgers within one run with two outs.
“If I could have contributed a little bit more I think we wouldn’t have been in that spot,” Ohtani said through interpreter Will Ireton. Ohtani, who snapped an 0-for-15 drought with the homer, had grounded out with the bases loaded in his previous at-bat, the most substantive rally the Dodgers mustered all evening with their short-handed lineup.
Stone’s last line was stung by Rooker’s shot as well. Since that memorable night in Chicago, Stone has a 7.15 ERA after giving up five runs while only getting 12 outs. Five of the final eight hitters Stone faced were able to reach safely after he narrowly avoided disaster early on. Shea Langeliers exhaled a high-quality shifter. Later on, Seth Brown added two more runs on a fastball near the top of the zone. Then, without recording an out in the fifth, Stone’s night came to an end with a walk, triple, and double.
431 ft. bomb from Bangeliers 🤯 pic.twitter.com/Kj6o7cWA81
— Oakland A’s (@Athletics) August 3, 2024
“I’m just not executing in certain counts, certain situations,” Stone said.
On Friday, Stone’s fastball velocity was somewhat higher than his season average. Stone finished the game with 111 2/3 for the season, but Dodgers manager Dave Roberts pointed out that Stone is on track to reach a career high in innings pitched. Between the major leagues and the minors, he pitched 131 2/3 innings in the previous season. For the one Dodgers starter who has not missed a shift in the rotation this year, though, it is not insignificant.
“I don’t know if it’s fatigue,” Roberts said, “but it very well could be.”
This squad is not set up to take on the added strain of a second struggling starting pitcher. Dodgers pitchers have a 5.88 ERA combined since Stone’s breakthrough start, which is the second-worst in MLB. In that time, no rotation has played fewer innings.
For months the Dodgers have played mediocre baseball with a straightforward approach. Every day, their pitching has become more and more subpar, affecting either the bullpen or the rotation. It would be difficult for even a full lineup to put together winning runs; the uphill climb has gotten even steeper this month due to the injuries that have destroyed baseball’s most elite squad.
“When you have a good team, the only question is if everybody can stay healthy,” Hernández said. “Obviously, we had a lot of injuries lately.”
The Dodgers have been without Freddie Freeman (emergency leave), Chris Taylor (strained groin), Miguel Rojas (flexor strain), Max Muncy (strained oblique), and Mookie Betts (fractured hand) due to a dreadful week. Tommy Edman, their largest position player addition at the deadline, will not be playing in his first major league games until later in the season. One of the three remaining All-Stars, Will Smith, has a.200 batting average since June 1.
“I think certain guys that are playing right now, essentially playing every day, are maybe being a little exposed,” Roberts said. “You’re not being able to protect certain guys because our depth is certainly tapped in. … The guys we’re running out there are doing the best they can.”
It has left the team struggling to gain any momentum, with Ohtani and Hernández producing the majority of the offense. On Friday, they made all five runs.
“It’s just not Shohei’s job alone to carry this offense,” Roberts said. “That’s impossible.”
After the team’s first complete losing month since April 2018, Friday did nothing to erase the bitter taste. San Diego and Arizona, the two clubs right behind them in the NL West rankings, gained ground. Each is behind by just four games, which is the narrowest deficit since April. Now, it is a real division race.
“We certainly weren’t taking anything for granted,” Roberts said Friday afternoon. “The Padres certainly played really good baseball. They got themselves back into the division race. … We just got to get back to winning baseball games.”
Their path to winning games is as precarious as ever.
It is still difficult to find solutions with the trade deadline behind us. Right-hander Jack Flaherty, who was traded by the team for the best pitcher available at the deadline, will have the task of breaking the club’s losing streak on Saturday night. Although the club is treating rookies River Ryan, Landon Knack, and Justin Wrobleski cautiously, it has enjoyed what it has seen from them.
Walker Buehler, who has struggled in his two rehab starts with Triple-A Oklahoma City, is another option. On Thursday, he needed 86 pitches to get 11 outs and was tagged for six runs. Roberts said on Friday afternoon that Buehler, troubles and all, will make one more start at that level before going back to the big-league team.
“The results certainly weren’t there,” Roberts said. “He’s an All-Star major-league pitcher. So at some point in time, you do the build-up. He’s got one more. Then he’s got to help us at the major-league level. It comes down to Walker competing, making pitches and us running him out there. That’s where I’m at.”
Ten months ago, Bobby Miller started his first postseason game for the Dodgers, but his status in the team’s rotation during this time is also uncertain. Miller was withdrawn from his scheduled start on Friday due to discomfort in his adductor after a bullpen session. Miller was optioned to the minor leagues less than a month ago. His last few excursions have also been difficult for him to gain traction.
Stone has made enough pitches to be given a chance to start in October. That being said, it has been tiresome to wait and hope for reinforcements. Rather than treading water, one has had to absorb water.
“We got to find a way to turn the page,” Roberts said.
(Photo of Gavin Stone: Godofredo A. Vásquez / Associated Press)
