Streaking Dodgers Finally Fall

I didn't want to jinx the Dodgers' recent winning streak by writing about it in this blog. After a 10-5 loss to Adrian Gonzalez and the San Diego Padres last night, I can take up my keyboard once again.

In my last entry I wrote about the Padres and how they have survived on pitching thus far, using it as a means to climb to the top of the NL West and stay there for most of the season. The Dodgers' nine-game win streak further proves that winning baseball games is all about pitching. The Dodger ERA during the streak was a mere 1.72, certainly the best stretch of pitching the Dodgers have had all season. John Ely, in his best Padre imitation, has come out of nowhere to do his part, and has been spectacular in three starts since his major-league debut. I got to see him pitch on Monday against the Houston Astros, where he struck out a career-high eight batters in seven innings of work. The Dodgers can't send Ely down again after the numbers he's putting up - he's been their most consistent starter over the past two weeks. Hiroki Kuroda is still head of the pack with five wins. But when you have to resort to giving the ball to Ramon Ortiz to keep a win streak alive, you're in trouble, and Ortiz was awful again last night. The bullpen also struggled in last night's game, as they had been on a hot streak of their own but allowed five runs in the late innings Wednesday. George Sherrill continues to struggle, which would be a lot worse if Hong-Chih Kuo wasn't pitching so well. Still, the Dodgers have made up three games in the standings since my last post, which was a week ago. A win over the Padres tonight with Clayton Kershaw on the mound would put the Dodgers within one game of the division lead, and after the rough start the team experienced to open the season, including a few days in last place, that would be quite an accomplishment.