Dodgers Look to Young Nathan Eovaldi in Hopes of Series Win

Nathan Eovaldi (0-1, 2.57) vs. Alex White (1-3, 6.28)

 Lineup: vs. Colorado

Dee Gordon 6

Elian Herrera 5

Bobby Abreu 7

Andre Ethier 9

Jerry Hairston 4

James Loney 3

A.J. Ellis 2

Tony Gwynn 8

Nathan Eovaldi 1

Relief. The frustrating five-game losing streak has finally come to an end. Aaron Harang battled CarGo and the Rockies yesterday as he picked up his fourth win and picked up the Dodgers’ spirit. The offense finally came around too. Extra base hits from Ethier, Herrera, Loney, and a homerun from Abreu helped to notch six runs. The Dodgers were 3 for 12 with runners in scoring position, while Dodger pitching held the Rockies to 1 for 8 with RISP. The Dodger defense was also a lot better in game two, and that had a lot to do with the fact that James Loney and Elian Herrera were playing the corners of the infield instead of using players out of position which sparked four errors in game one.

Sunday afternoon’s rubber game will pit two young right-handers against each other. Nathan Eovaldi

will be making his second start this season while filling in for the disabled Ted Lilly. Last time out Nate was impressive with his pitching repertoire, but he unfortunately received the loss against Milwaukee when the Dodger offense took the night off.They only got one run off six hits against Michael Fiers. In seven innings of work, Nate only allowed 2 runs on 4 hits. He’s only pitched 4 innings against Colorado in his career, and he is 0-1 with a 11.25 ERA against them. Once again, Eovaldi will have to try to control CarGo’s ferocity at the plate.

With the draft approaching, we can see how the Dodgers’ preference for drafting young pitchers has paid off with Eovaldi. Nathan Eovaldi was a 11th round draft pick in 2008 for the Dodgers. He had Tommy John surgery during his junior year of high school. Nathan received a $250,000 signing bonus to forgo a scholarship to Texas A&M.

Alex White will try to bounce back after he experiences his worst start of his career last time out. He allowed 10 hits and 6 runs with 3 homeruns against the Astros. He got lucky, and he wasn’t part of the decision. Similar to Eovaldi’s experience against the Rockies, White has only pitched 4.1 innings against the Dodgers in his career. He is 0-1 with a 12.46 ERA against Los Angeles. The only current Dodger to have ever bat against White is Bobby Abreu who has 2 at bats against him.

The Rockies currently sit 10 1/2 games behind the first place Dodgers who are 33-20. The Giants are in

second place and 4 games back.

First pitch will be at 12:10 pm, and the game will be televised on KCAL. After the conclusion of this series, the Dodgers and Rockies will not meet again until August 6th at Dodger Stadium. Tomorrow the Dodgers begin a four-game series against the Philadelphia Phillies. Let’s keep the momentum going with another win!