Baseball was the hottest thing in beautiful Southern California this weekend, as the Left West Los Angeles Dodgers swept the Deep South’s Atlanta Braves. It was not nearly the contest for the Dodgers we anticipated, but it was a great time in the big show, and we got multiple series heroes to talk about.
Tyler Glasnow’s performance in the series was hero-worthy as he continued his streak of dominant starts. In his seven-inning, two-run, five-hit, 10-strikeout, and one-walk outing, Glasnow showcased his elite stuff, consistently keeping the Braves hitters off-balance.
Glasnow’s command and efficiency were on full display, as he threw 61 of his 96 pitches for strikes and induced 11 swinging strikes and 12 called strikes. He attacked the strike zone, and working ahead in the count was on point. We always said Glasnow’s best days were still ahead of him.
Dodgers manager Dave Roberts praised Glasnow’s performance, noting that the right-hander “continues to pick us up and be that top-end guy we expect him to be.” Glasnow’s dominant outing indicated his status as a true ace and an excellent Dodgers pick-up this offseason.
Then we get to our second hero of the Dodgers sweep of the Braves, Andy Pages. Weldon to the MLB young man. Pages, who was once nearly traded to the Angels before the deal fell through, has been an exciting young rookie in his Dodger debut, hitting .328 with four homers and 39 TB in his first 17 games as a big leaguer. He has been so impactful in his debut that he draws comparisons to the break-out rookie showing of former Dodger Yasil Puig. He earned his Hero badge in the Braves series by coming up Uber clutch in game one while going 6-13 with two key RBIs and a dinger.
The fact that Pages was once nearly traded away only adds to the intrigue surrounding his meteoric rise with the Dodgers. His successful transition to the major leagues has validated the organization’s faith in him. The depth and versatility of the Dodgers’ talent pipeline continue to impress.
Bryce Elder nailed the “Zeros” category, as his performance fell short of expectations. Elder, who was called up less than two weeks ago and was looking like a reliable contributor for the Braves., Going 1-0 with a 1.50 ERA in his first two starts. He quickly turned back into the pitcher we saw for the Braves in the NLDS when the Phillies destroyed his career. Dodger took that up a notch Saturday as Elder was chased from the game in the fourth inning, allowing seven runs on seven hits with four walks and four strikeouts.
Braves manager Brian Snitker attributed Elder’s struggles to his location and command issues, noting that the young right-hander “wasn’t getting ahead and too many walks.” Elder’s inability to establish a consistent rhythm and keep the Dodgers’ hitters off-balance was a significant factor in the team’s lopsided defeat.
The Braves had been relying on their starting pitchers to go deep into games and provide a solid foundation for their offense, but Elder’s short outing disrupted that blueprint and put additional strain on the bullpen.
Elder was almost the first player in history to be DFA’ed in the middle of a game. 89 MPH fastball got hammered all night, putting 12 baserunners on in less than four innings; he deserves to be DFA’ed. He is our Zero for the series.
Honorable mentions were made to Shohei Ohtani and Max Muncy, who were dominant as usual in the series sweep. Ohtani went 6-11 with three HRs, while Muncy went 4-5 with three long balls Saturday night. All said and done, the Dodgers are who we thought they were and are now unarguably the best team in baseball.
