Arizona @ Los Angeles preview
Dodger Stadium
Last Meeting ( May 12, 2010 ) LA Dodgers 6, Arizona 3
When the month of May began, the Arizona Diamondbacks had a better record than the Los Angeles Dodgers.
The second month of the season ends Monday with the two teams beginning a three-game set at Dodgers Stadium and they couldn’t be heading in more opposite directions.
The Dodgers are a healthy 19-8 in May to move into second place in the NL West, sitting two games behind the San Diego Padres at 28-22 overall. Meanwhile, the Diamondbacks are 9-19 and have lost three straight to fall into last place in the division at 20-31.
So what will June bring?
Difficult to tell, but the Dodgers should have Andre Ethier back from the disabled list and that can only be a good thing considering he was the National League triple crown leader when he went down with a broken pinkie.
The left-handed hitting outfielder is expected to be in the lineup Monday against Rodrigo Lopez (2-3, 4.57 ERA) with his .392 batting average, 11 home runs and 38 RBIs.
The offense was solid without Ethier, similarly to last season when the Dodgers kept rolling after Manny Ramirez was suspended for 50 games.
While Ethier’s return will be an obvious boost for the offense, it has been the pitching of late that has the Dodgers pushing the Padres.
Chad Billingsley (6-2, 3.63 ERA) gets the call on Monday. He was won four straight decisions, allowing two earned runs or less in three of those outings.
The right-hander is taking on the Diamondbacks at the most opportune time.
Arizona has lost seven in a row, including all six to start this nine-game road trip after previous stops at NL West foes Colorado and San Francisco.
It appeared they were going to end the slide on Sunday after taking a 5-3 lead into the bottom of the ninth against the Giants, but ended up falling, 6-5, in 10 innings.
The pitching staff has allowed 86 home runs – 28 more than the closest National League staff (Pittsburgh) – to put them on pace to break the modern day record.
The offense has disappeared on the road trip after being one of best early in the season.
It has left Arizona fighting to remain relevant before the month of June even begins.