Amazingly, as we enter September and prepare for the biggest series of the season in the NL West, the Los Angeles Dodgers and San Francisco Giants not only have the exact same record at this point in the season, but they also are also evenly matched with an 8-8 record against each other. The only metric that may be in the Dodgers favor at this point is momentum, as they have been scorching hot while the Giants just salvaged one game in the last 2 series - a 3-game series in Atlanta and a 4-game series against the Brewers in San Francisco.
That is why tonight’s game is so vital, as who ever wins will take sole possession of first place and immediately take the momentum into the Game 2. This will by no means be a cakewalk for either club and if Dodgers fans assume it will be, they should remember the Dodgers losing multiple games recently against teams like the Colorado Rockies and the Los Angeles Angels. In baseball, it’s never easy, and a team like the Giants - even when they are having a terrible season which is clearly not this year - always step up and give the Dodgers everything they want. Expect no different in this series.
Friday, September 3rd
Tonight’s matchup begins with David Price for the Dodgers against Anthony Desclafani for the Giants. Price is no longer an elite starting pitcher but he should not be underestimated either. His ERA is solid at 4.37 this season in 33 appearances, only 11 of which were starts. In just his starts, he has held opposing hitters to a .234 batting average. His ERA is also very solid except for during the 1st inning, where he has a 5.73 ERA. If the Giants plan to do damage against Price, the first inning could be his most susceptible based on his performance so far this year.
Anthony Desclafani has been lights out for the Giants for a large part of the season. However, there is one team he has consistently struggled against. You guessed it - the Los Angeles Dodgers. In five starts against the Dodgers, he has a 9.43 ERA, allowing 6 home runs in 21 innings along with 31 hits and 12 walks. This is something that can’t be ignored going into this series. However, the overall pictures has been solid for Desclafani, as he has an 11-6 record with a 3.38 ERA and should have probably been an All Star after a stellar first half, but was unfortunately snubbed from the roster.
Saturday, September 4th
Unfortunately, another problem the Giants have coming into this series is a lack of reliable starting arms and the starter for Saturday is currently TBD. Both Johnny Cueto and Alex Wood are unavailable with Wood testing positive for Covid-19 and Cueto missing a start with illness then getting lit up the next day when he tried to pitch. The Dodgers will try to take advantage of this with the Giants possibly using Jose Quintana, who did not have a good year with the Angels but did pitch well in his Giants debut, or Sammy Long, who has looked solid lately but certainly isn’t going to be favored over the Dodgers starter, Julio Urias.
Urias only leads the entire league in wins and after a couple of rough outings, he put together his best month of the season in August, going 3-0 with a 1.38 ERA. His last 3 outings against San Francisco have been solid and the Dodgers should be favorites in Game 2, which is another reason why Game 1 is so vital as the Giants will have Anthony Desclafani going, at least one healthy arm that has been reliable for them this year (albeit not against the Dodgers).
Sunday, September 5th
The Giants have not announced their pitcher for Sunday either, but no matter who they throw out there, the Dodgers will be favorites with Walker Buehler, the possible Cy Young Award winner this year, taking the hill. He is 13-2 with a 2.05 ERA and is clearly one of the best pitchers in the game today. With proper rest, neither Kevin Gausman nor Logan Webb would be available for this series. Gausman should be set to start Monday against the Rockies unless he’s bumped up to Sunday. Otherwise, the Giants will have to rely on a combination of their bullpen and again, Quintana or Long, to compete against Buehler. Again, Game 1 is absolutely critical.