The Guardians will face the Dodgers this weekend in what could be the biggest test of the season so far.
The Guardians are coming off a sweep of the Colorado Rockies where virtually everything was going right for them. The offense was rolling and scored 15 runs and had 31 hits in the series. The pitching also showed up against a team that is one of the best in their home park. Now comes arguably the biggest test of this young’s team season.
The Dodgers are just about a lock to be in the playoffs once the season is over and they are a legit contender to win the World Series too. Baseball Reference currently gives them a 99.3 percent chance to make the playoffs and a 20.5 percent chance to win it all.
They have one of the most complete lineups in all of baseball from Mookie Betts as the lead-off hitter all the way down to the ninth man in the order who is Gavin Lux. Throw in Freddie Freeman, Trea Turner, and Cody Bellinger in there and it's easy to see this team is loaded. Pitchers and managers can’t get around anyone in the lineup without suffering the consequences.
One of the biggest challenges for the Guardians against the Dodgers will be the left-handed pitching they are set to face off against this weekend. They are scheduled to see former Cy-Young winner Clayton Kershaw tomorrow and All-Star candidate Julio Urias on Saturday. Both are elite left-handed pitchers who can absolutely shut down lineups.
Left-handed pitching has been an area where the Guardians have struggled this season. As a team, they are currently batting .239 against lefties and have only scored 69 runs this season.
With seeing two, possibly three lefty starters over the weekend, it will also be interesting to see how Tito decides to manage the upcoming games.
But if there is one thing that this Guardians team has done all season, and could very well do this weekend, is surprise fans. In the month of June, the offense is currently hitting .270 and the pitching has the sixth best ERA in baseball with a 2.93. When this team is firing on all cylinders, they can compete with anyone.
The Guardians and Dodgers will kick off the series at 10:10 pm on Apple TV+.
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