Will Brett Anderson Bring Bad Weather for Opener vs. Braves?

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Brett Anderson must have a personal rain cloud over his shoulder, because he has pitched in inclement weather in many of his starts dating back to that thunderstorm in Arizona which rained on Anderson and the Dodgers during Spring Training. Perhaps the ominous sky and unpredictable weather behind Anderson’s starts this season are the perfect backdrop for the solid and healthy season he has had thus far for the Dodgers.

Brett Anderson (2-2, 3.61) vs. Williams Perez (0-0, 6.14)

Pitching has been uncharacteristically up and down for the Dodgers this season. Unfortunate season-ending surgeries for Hyun-jin Ryu and Brandon McCarthy combined with Clayton Kershaw‘s struggles, have made it even more important for the Brett Anderson to have a healthy season on the mound. So far, so good.

The left-hander has already made more starts this season (9) than he has since 2011. Interestingly, this will be Anderson’s first career start against Atlanta. Anderson has pitched well in his 4 starts at Dodgers Stadium. He is 1-0 with a 3.00 ERA in 21 innings. Left-handers are hitting .357 against Anderson this season, but the 3 homeruns he has allowed this season have been to right-handers.

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Anderson lost to the Giants last time out, and he allowed 3 runs on 7 hits with 7 strikeouts and 3 walks on 112 pitches over 6 1/3 foggy innings. Hopefully Brett will get a sunny Los Angeles Memorial Day this time around.

Williams Perez, the 24-year old right-hander, will be trying to chop through the Dodgers lineup on Monday afternoon. The rookie has yet to notch a big league victory, and this will be his second major league start. Left-handers are hitting .364 off Perez albeit a small sample size. Last season with AA-Mississippi, Perez went 7-6 with a 2.91 ERA and 94 strikeouts in 26 games and 133 innings. He did have 9 wild pitches and 11 hit batters in the minors last season.

Lineup:
Pederson CF
Rollins SS
Kendrick 2B
Gonzalez 1B
Turner 3B
Ethier RF
Van Slyke LF
Ellis C
Anderson P

In his first MLB start, the Braves defeated the Tampa Bay Rays, but Perez wasn’t involved in the decision. He pitched 5 innings and allowed 1 run on 6 hits with 7 strikeouts and 1 walk on 79 pitches.

The Dodgers are still 2 games ahead of the Giants in the N.L. West, but anymore hiccups or black magic momentum by San Francisco could shake up the leader board.

The Dodgers have only scored 9 runs in their last eight games. They haven’t scored more than 3 runs in a game in 9 days. Luckily, the Giants lost to the Rockies on Sunday and have lost their last two games. The Dodgers are 19-6 at home, but they are 4-6 in their last 10 games.

The Dodgers can make Memorial Day memorable with a solid start by Anderson and offensive fireworks to celebrate the holiday. If not, the Giants will be breathing down the Dodgers’ necks in the battle for the top spot.

Go Blue!