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Julio UrĂas and Dodgers struggle, drop season-opening series to Rockies
DENVER — There was no shortage of issues for the Dodgers to address Sunday afternoon.
Following their 9-4 loss to the Colorado Rockies — which cemented their first series loss at Coors Field since 2018, and their first defeat in a season-opening series since 2013 — there were plenty of questions in the clubhouse.
Starting pitcher Julio UrĂas had a troubling season debut. He suffered a drop in velocity from last season. He failed to strike out a single batter. And he gave up six runs (three earned) in two-plus innings.
The defense also struggled for a second straight day, digging the team into an early three-run hole in the first inning after Chris Taylor lost track of a fly ball in the wind.
Dodgers are in big trouble if Julio UrĂas can’t deliver quality innings
DENVER — He shook his head. He rolled his shoulders. He slapped his glove. He took a baseball from an umpire and promptly tossed it on the ground.
By the time Julio UrĂas’ season debut ended Sunday afternoon, with hits flying and grocery bags floating and questions swirling through the cold Coors Field wind, the Dodgers magical left-hander couldn’t get off the field fast enough.
When Dave Roberts came to get the ball in the third inning, UrĂas popped off the mound, met him on the grass, handed it over, took off his cap, lowered his head, and trudged purposely into the shadows of the dugout.
This was not what the Dodgers expected. This is not what the Dodgers needed.
In his first opportunity to fill the role as the No. 2 starter in a thin rotation teetering on mediocrity, UrĂas did not play his part, burying them with a six-run deficit in an eventual 9-4 defeat to a Colorado Rockies team this columnist had described as “absolutely awful.”
Rockies defeat Dodgers, 9-4
Ninth inning
Dodgers: Hanser Alberto, batting for Lux, popped to second. Betts struck out looking. Freeman struck out swinging.
Final score: Rockies 9, Dodgers 4
We go to the ninth, Rockies 9, Dodgers 4
Eighth inning
Dodgers: Smith flied to center. Bellinger struck out swinging. Taylor grounded to short.
Rockies: Left-hander Justin Bruihl now pitching for the Dodgers. Hampson walked. Hampson stole second. Joe popped to short. Bryant struck out swinging. Rodgers grounded to third.
Score after eight: Rockies 9, Dodgers 4
Rockies take 9-4 lead after seven
Seventh inning
Dodgers: T.Turner flied to center. Muncy grounded to second. J.Turner grounded to first.
Rockies: Right-hander Evan Phillips now pitching for the Dodgers. Cron struck out swinging. McMahon grounded to short. Grichuk reached first on Freeman’s error. Diaz homered to left. Daza grounded to short.
Score after seven: Rockies 9, Dodgers 4
Rockies still lead 7-4 after six
Sixth inning
Dodgers: Left-hander Ty Blach now pitching. Bellinger walked. Taylor laid down a bunt down the third base line and beat it out for a single. First and second, no one out. Lux flied to right, Bellinger to third. Grichuk had to run full speed to catch that ball. Betts struck out swinging. Freeman grounded to second.
Rockies: Daza singled to the pitcher. Hampson flied to center. Joe flied to center. Bryant singled to left. Taylor made a diving attempt but came up short. Brusdar Graterol replaces White. Rodgers grounded to second.
Score after six: Rockies 7, Dodgers 4
It’s 7-4 Rockies after five
Fifth inning
Dodgers: Muncy fouled out. Nice running, sliding grab by McMahon. J.Turner struck out looking. Smith struck out.
Rockies: McMahon grounded to first. Grichuk fouled to the catcher. Diaz flied to left.
Score after five: Rockies 7, Dodgers 4
Dodgers close to 7-4 in fourth inning
Fourth inning
Dodgers: J.Turner singled to left. Smith walked. Bellinger singled to right. Two for two. Bases loaded, nobody out. Taylor flied to left, Turner scoring. Lux hit a grounder up the middle. Hampson made a diving stop but everyone was safe. Bases loaded, one out. That’s it for Senzatela. Right-hander Jhoulys Chacin now pitching. Betts struck out swinging. Freeman flied to left, Bryant, fighting the wind and sun, dropped it. All three runners scored. It’s 6-4. The wind is gusting at 52 mph. T.Turner grounded to third.
Rockies: Joe was hit by a pitch. Joe stole second. Bryant flied to deep center, Joe to third. Rodgers flied to center, Joe scoring. Cron struck out.
Score after four: Rockies 7, Dodgers 4
Rockies extend lead to 6-0
Third inning
Dodgers: Betts flied to right. Freeman singled to right-center. T.Turner lined to second. Muncy flied to center.
Rockies: Rodgers walked. Cron homered to left. It’s 5-0 Rockies. McMahon was hit by a pitch. Grichuk walked. It’s safe to say that UrĂas doesn’t have his good stuff today. Diaz singled to right, scoring McMahon, Grichuk to third. It’s 6-0 Rockies. And that’s it for UrĂas. Mitch White now pitching. Daza flied to right. Betts tried to catch Diaz off first, but White didn’t have his foot on the bag. Dodgers challenged, even though replays clearly showed he didn’t have his foot on the bag. Hampson grounded into a double play.
Score after three: Rockies 6, Dodgers 0
Rockies still lead 3-0 after two
Second inning
Dodgers: Justin Turner hit a pop fly that, thanks to the wind, dropped in for a hit in right field. Will Smith lined into a double play. Cody Bellinger hit a little roller up the third base line for a hit. His first hit of the season. Chris Taylor hit a rocket off the fence in right for a double. Bellinger stopped at third. The ball was hit so hard he had no chance to score. Gavin Lux grounded out.
Rockies: Daza singled to right. Hampson flied to center. Joe grounded out, Daza to second. Bryant grounded to third.
Score after two: Rockies 3, Dodgers 0
Rockies take 3-0 lead in first inning
First inning
Dodgers: Mookie Betts singled sharply to right. Freddie Freeman grounded into a double play. Trea Turner singled to right. They are hitting the ball hard off of Senzatela. Even Freeman’s double play was a rocket. Max Muncy flied to center. Daza almost lost the ball in the sun but lunged and caught it.
Rockies: Connor Joe hit a hard hopper to short. Trea Turner made a nice pick and threw him out. Kris Bryant singled to center. Brendan Rodgers flied to center. C.J. Cron singled to left. First and second, two out. Ryan McMahon hit a fly ball to left that got caught in the swirling wind. Chris Taylor dropped it and two runs scored. Does AJ Pollock make that catch? Randal Grichuk singled to right, scoring McMahon. It’s 3-0. Grichuk stole second. Elias Diaz grounded out.
Score after one: Rockies 3, Dodgers 0
Today’s starting lineups
How MLB’s latest grand experiment is fueling skepticism and mistrust among players
ATLANTA — There’s a new addition to Dodger Stadium for the 2022 season that fans won’t see but could impact the games they watch.
A humidor occupies a room down the hallway from the home dugout. It will be powered around the clock this season, storing baseballs at a precise temperature and humidity before they’re used in games starting with the team’s home opener next Thursday against the Cincinnati Reds. It’s the result of the league’s latest experiment.
This season, for the first time, Major League Baseball will store game balls in humidors at all 30 stadiums. Previously limited to 10 ballparks, most famously at Coors Field to counter the thin air in Colorado, the storage unit will be used across the board in attempt to standardize baseballs in different environments. The humidors were recommended in a 2018 study commissioned by MLB that examined home run rates.
No bad blood? Kenley Jansen, Freddie Freeman discuss budding Dodgers-Braves rivalry
Kenley Jansen’s first appearance of the 2022 season was both familiar and strange.
Familiar because he pitched in the ninth inning Friday night. Because his velocity climbed as his outing went along. Because some bad luck, in the form of a tight strike zone and a couple of cue shots, produced queasiness before he escaped.
Strange because of everything else.
It was his first time jogging to the mound from the home bullpen at Truist Park in right-center field. His first time taking the mound to Ludacris rapping through “Welcome to Atlanta.” His first time, after 12 years pitching for the Dodgers, wearing the Atlanta Braves’ home whites.
Freddie Freeman shares emotional exchange with former Angel José Iglesias during game
DENVER — Freddie Freeman didn’t know why Colorado Rockies shortstop José Iglesias was crying when he pulled into first base Friday afternoon.
Iglesias had just hit an RBI single, extending the Rockies’ early lead against the Dodgers on opening day. Yet, tears welled up in Iglesias’ eyes as he stopped, looked up and pointed at the sky.
Iglesias walked back toward the bag and the Dodgers new first baseman asked him what was wrong.
An emotional exchange followed.
Iglesias told Freeman that a few weeks ago his father, Candelario, died. Iglesias said his dad, a factory worker in Cuba, never missed watching one of Iglesias’ games.
It had been a constant comfort for the 11-year major league veteran, who signed with the Rockies this winter after playing for the Angels and Boston Red Sox last year.
Dodgers TV schedule for the 2022 season
Here’s a look at the TV schedule for the 160 games remaining on the Dodgers’ 2022 regular-season schedule:
Dodgers’ elevated bats come back to sea level in loss to Rockies
DENVER — The Dodgers’ patchwork pitching plan Saturday night was fraught but functional.
Instead, it was their lineup that fell flat during a 3-2 loss to the Colorado Rockies.
In their lowest-scoring performance at Coors Field since July 2019, the Dodgers tallied just seven hits (six of them singles) and no walks. For the first seven innings, they were silenced by Rockies starter Germán Márquez.
Then in the eighth, they missed a prime comeback opportunity, scratching across a game-tying run but leaving the bases loaded.
That allowed the Rockies to rally for the win, with Connor Joe’s go-ahead home run off Blake Treinen in the bottom of the eighth proving to be the difference in front of a sold-out crowd of 48,087.
“We had a chance to win,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said.