Dodgers Drop 12-Inning Marathon in San Diego

These games are not good for my blood pressure, and I want my mommy. The Dodgers lost another extra inning game on Friday night at San Diego. The game ended in the bottom of the twelfth with long man Kevin Correia allowing a walk-off ground ball single to Yasmani Grandal to score Yangervis Solarte with the bases loaded. The Dodgers lost another marathon, by the final score of 3-2. The Dodgers are now 5-9 this year in extra inning affairs.

Dodgers  2 11 1

Padres     3 8 0  /12 innings

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You might be mad at Kevin Correia for being so awful, but he shouldn’t even have been there in the first place. The bullpen threw six scoreless frames before Correia had to be used. Of course Kenley Jansen sat in the bullpen to never appear in the game. Don Mattingly was Waiting for a save opportunity that would never come. You can’t be surprised that the worst pitcher on the roster couldn’t throw strikes when called upon in the twelfth inning.

Jake Roth-USA TODAY Sports

Jake Roth-USA TODAY Sports

Dodger starter Dan Haren pitched well enough to win, (6IP 5H 2R 1ER 1BB 3K), but he came away with a no-decision. The Dodger hitting and defense were not there to support him. Dee Gordon threw a taylor made double play into left field, and Andre Ethier bobbled a base hit in center field which cost them another run. Oh and Haren was unable to lay down a sacrifice in the third inning. Not that bunting ever helps anything.

Then there was the injury saga of Hanley Ramirez. That guy is like a fragile piece of glass. He can’t go five minutes without getting hurt. Despite this he drove in both Dodger runs and is better injured than anyone else the Dodgers have. Oh you want the .197 hitting Miguel Rojas playing shortstop? No way Jose.

San Diego scored first in the bottom of the second. Yasmani Grandal walked, and went to third on Gordon’s throwing error on Jedd Gyorko’s slow grounder. San Diego catcher Rene Rivera’s sacrifice fly to left scored Grandal and the Padres took a 1-0 lead.

The Dodgers tied it in the third inning. Turner and A.J. had consecutive singles. After whiffs to Haren and Gordon, Hanley’s double just inside the first base line scored Turner to tie the game at 1-1. Hanley was hitting second in place of the slumping Yasiel Puig who was given the day off. Hanley’s monstrous home run in the eighth inning tied the score. But in the sixth, Hanley injured his quad (Tight Quad) rounding first base awkwardly after a single. Of course he was tagged out as well after he popped up in pain. He was removed later in the ninth inning for Miguel Rojas. Hanley was 3 for 4 with a home run and two RBI. Puig did appear later in the game as a pinch-hitter and struck out. The Cuban phenom is now 0 for his last 19.

Jake Roth-USA TODAY Sports

Jake Roth-USA TODAY Sports

More sloppy defense cost the Dodgers again in the bottom of the fourth. With two outs, San Diego got three consecutive singles from Rivera, Rymer Liriano, and Alexi Amarista to go up by a score of 2-1. Rivera was going to be stopped at third on Amarista’s single, but was able to score after Ethier bobbled the ball in center field.

San Diego starter Andrew Cashner whiffed eight Dodgers through six frames, but tired out early. In the top of the eighth the Dodgers tied the game at 2-2 when Hanley blasted a monstrous home run into the left field upper deck seats. The home run was very similar to his Western Metal Supply shot from last year. As a matter of fact it landed near the same area.

With the score tied at 2 thanks to Hanley’s thirteenth home run of the season, the game became a battle of the bullpens. The Dodgers were forced to empty out their entire relief corps. The offense just couldn’t score. The Dodgers left the bases loaded in the ninth inning. Ethier singled, and walks to A.J. Ellis, and pinch-hitter Scott Van Slyke loaded the bases. But Gordon grounded into a force to end the inning.

The game went on and on. Finally in the bottom of the twelfth the Dodgers were out of pitchers and forced to bring in Correia. The veteran right hander allowed a single to Amarista. After Jake Goebbert flied out to left, Solarte walked. Then of course there was a wild pitch. Then he walked Almonte. With the bases loaded Dodger killer Seth Smith’s grounder to second turned into a force play at the plate with Amarista being tagged out. But the Dodgers couldn’t get the double play at first base. With the Dodger infield up and looking like a “chorus line” according to Vin, Grandal’s piddly ground ball single through the infield won the game.

Jake Roth-USA TODAY Sports

Justin Turner went 3 for 5 and continues to swing a hot bat. But Gordon was 0 for 6, Matt Kemp was 1 for 6, and Adrian Gonzalez also turned in a 1 for 6 performance.

After four hours and twelve minutes, San Diego reliever Tim Stauffer picked up the win. The Dodgers had eleven hit, and left eleven men on base. The boys in blue were 1 for 9 with runners in scoring position.

The Dodgers lost a game in the standings after the Giants pounded the Brewers. The 76-59 Dodgers are now 3.5 games ahead of San Francisco in the NL West.

The Dodgers will try and get back on track Saturday night in the second game of the series. Zack Greinke will counter old nemesis Ian Kennedy at 5:40 PM.