Originally published by DodgerBlue.com
The Los Angeles Dodgers have not been playing well as of late, and that was amplified when they lost two of three games to the Kansas City Royals over the weekend.
The Royals entered the series last in the American League Central with a 23-58 record and no postseason hopes. The Dodgers, on the other hand, are fighting for a playoff spot and arrived at Kauffman Stadium at 45-35.
The Dodgers did have to wait out multiple rain delays on their road trip while also traveling from Colorado to Kansas City with no day off, but manager Dave Roberts did not view that as an excuse, via SportsNet LA:
“I don’t think so. I have a hard time using that as an excuse. We came in today with Tony pitching and I felt good about who we were running out there. We just didn’t play well and they played better, quite frankly.”
The back-to-back losses dropped the Dodgers to .500 on the road this season. While Roberts isn’t sure why the team hasn’t performed well away from Dodger Stadium, he noted they were just outplayed by the Royals:
“I don’t know the road record. What I can speak to is this series, which is more fresh to me. Those guys just outplayed us. It’s a different brand of baseball as far as putting the ball in play, hitting behind runners, stealing bases. They were excellent in situational hitting. To be quite honest, we couldn’t keep up, and that’s how they won this series. But as far as overall, I don’t know the answer to that.”
Fortunately for the Dodgers, they now return home for a six-game homestand, where they have gone 24-15. Following that, they’ll get some time to reset with the All-Star break.
Clayton Kershaw ties Dodgers record with All-Star selection
Clayton Kershaw and Will Smith joined Mookie Betts, Freddie Freeman and J.D. Martinez among the Dodgers going to the All-Star Game in Seattle.
With Kershaw’s being named to the National League team, he tied the Dodgers franchise record with 10 career All-Star Game selections. He shares it with Brooklyn legend Pee Wee Reese, who was selected to the Midsummer Classic in 1942 and from 1946-1954.
Kershaw reached the All-Star Game every season from 2011-2017. He returned to the event in 2019 but it wasn’t until 2022 that Kershaw made his first career All-Star Game start. Fittingly, it came at Dodger Stadium.
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