Dodgers' Enrique Hernandez: Slugs homer in victory
Rotowire
Hernandez went 1-for-3 with a solo home run, an additional run and a walk Saturday in an 11-3 win against the Yankees.
Hernandez produced just enough power to poke a solo shot to the right-field porch in the fifth inning, giving Los Angeles a 3-2 lead. The veteran utility man made his third straight start at third base, and he's notched an extra-base hit in each of those games, going 3-for-10 with two doubles and Saturday's homer along with three walks. Max Muncy (oblique) is on a slow ramp-up and figures to be out of action beyond next week, so Hernandez could be in for relatively consistent playing time in the short-term.
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Dodgers' Teoscar Hernandez: Enjoys massive day at dish
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Hernandez went 2-for-4 with a pair of home runs, a walk, six RBI and a stolen base in Saturday's 11-3 rout of the Yankees.
Hernandez got the scoring started Saturday with a solo shot to center field in the second inning. He added an RBI on a fielder's choice in the sixth before busting the game open for Los Angeles with a 424-foot grand slam in the eighth. Hernandez went just 2-for-16 over his first four games in June, but he's turned scorching hot since, going 7-for-13 with two homers and nine RBI across his past three contests. Hernandez is putting up big numbers in his first campaign with the Dodgers, slashing .262/.331/.500 with 15 homers, 47 RBI, 38 runs and four steals through 278 plate appearances.
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Dodgers' Gavin Stone: Improves to 7-2
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Stone (7-2) earned the win over the Yankees on Saturday, allowing two runs on eight hits and two walks while striking out six batters over 5.2 innings.
It looked like Stone could be in for a rough outing when he allowed a single to each of the first two batters he faced in the first inning, but he recovered to retire Aaron Judge, Giancarlo Stanton and Anthony Rizzo without allowing a run to score. The right-hander allowed New York to plate one run in each of the following two frames, but he was able to navigate through 5.2 innings with just those two runs on his ledger. Stone needed some help when he departed with two outs and the bases full of Yankees in the sixth, and Alex Vesia provided that assistance by getting Anthony Volpe to fly out to end the threat. Stone has recorded a victory in seven of his past 10 starts and has given up more than two runs just once during that span. He's shining in his first full big-league season, recording a 2.93 ERA, 1.24 WHIP and 53:21 K:BB through 67.2 innings.
Dodgers' Clayton Kershaw: One more sim game before assignment
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Kershaw (shoulder) will throw a three-inning simulated game next week and then start a rehab assignment, Bill Plunkett of The Orange County Register reports Saturday.
Kershaw completed a two-inning sim game Friday -- his second simulated game of June -- and will throw another one next week before being sent off to a rehab assignment. The veteran lefty touched 90 mph Friday and is ahead of schedule in his recovery from November shoulder surgery. Still, Kershaw will likely require a handful of rehab starts before rejoining the big-league roster, making a July return feasible.
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Dodgers' Jason Heyward: Not starting versus LHP
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Heyward isn't in the Dodgers' lineup for Saturday's game against the Yankees.
Heyward went 0-for-5 during Friday's series opener and will now sit down against the lefty-throwing Nestor Cortes. Chris Taylor, Andy Pages and Teoscar Hernandez will start across the Dodgers' outfield while Heyward rests.
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Dodgers' Gavin Lux: Resting against southpaw
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Lux isn't in the Dodgers' lineup Saturday against the Yankees.
Lux will take a seat as southpaw Nestor Cortes prepares to start on the mound for New York. Miguel Rojas will fill in at the keystone and bat seventh.
Muncy (oblique) has begun taking dry swings and doing plyo-ball workouts, Bill Plunkett of The Orange County Register reports.
This is a step forward for Muncy, as he had previously been unable to swing a bat at all after continuing to experience soreness in his oblique. However, manager Dave Roberts said last week that the third baseman is on a "slow program," so Muncy doesn't appear to be particularly close to a return. He hasn't played in a game since May 15 and will likely need to go on a rehab assignment before rejoining the big-league club.
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Dodgers' Bobby Miller: Goes four frames in rehab start
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Miller (shoulder) tossed four-plus innings in a rehab start with Triple-A Oklahoma City on Friday, allowing two runs (one earned) on four hits and two walks while striking out two batters.
This was Miller's third minor-league rehab appearance, and he's gradually worked up from three frames in his first rehab outing to four innings Friday. The righty hurler wasn't at his sharpest, but he approached a full workload with 85 pitches and sat at 97-98 mph with his fastball, per Eric Stephen of SBNation.com, after experiencing reduced velocity in his prior outing. Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said prior to Miller's outing Friday that it could be the pitcher's final minor-league appearance before returning to the big club, per Fabian Ardaya of The Athletic, but a decision on Miller's next step has not yet been announced. He's struggled throughout his rehab stint, collecting a 6.97 ERA, 1.74 WHIP and 6:5 K:BB across 10.1 frames.
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Dodgers' Michael Grove: Picks up victory Friday
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Grove (4-2) pitched a perfect inning to earn the win in relief against the Yankees on Friday.
Neither team was able to score through nine innings, pushing the contest into extra frames. The Dodgers failed to score in the top of the 10th, but Grove was able to extend the game by keeping the Yankees from scoring in the bottom of that inning. The right-hander then moved into position for the win as a result of Los Angeles scoring twice in the top of the 11th. Grove still has an uninspiring 4.59 ERA on the campaign, but he's been pitching well since the end of April. Over his past 15 outings, he holds a 2.20 ERA, 0.80 WHIP and 21:6 K:BB across 16.1 frames while recording four wins and four holds.
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Dodgers' Teoscar Hernandez: Produces game-winning hit
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Hernandez went 2-for-4 with a double and two RBI in Friday's 2-1 extra-innings win over the Yankees.
Pitching dominated the matchup between two of the league's top teams, and Hernandez was responsible for half of the Dodgers' four hits. His second knock came in the 11th inning, when he doubled to left field to plate Los Angeles' only two runs of the game. Hernandez has three RBI over his past two contests to move into the team lead with 41 RBI on the campaign.
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Dodgers' Yohan Ramirez: Collects first save
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Ramirez recorded his first save of the season in Friday's 2-1 win over the Yankees, giving up one unearned run on one hit in the 11th inning. He struck out two.
The journeyman right-hander is already on his third team of 2024, but with Evan Phillips having thrown 31 pitches the night before and both Daniel Hudson and Blake Treinen having been deployed earlier in Friday's contest, Ramirez got the call in a high-leverage spot and delivered. He allowed the phantom runner to score on a one-out single by Aaron Judge, but Ramirez then struck out Giancarlo Stanton before Anthony Rizzo popped out to end the game. In nine innings for the Dodgers, the 29-year-old Ramirez has a 3.00 ERA, 0.89 WHIP and 5:2 K:BB, but he's unlikely to become a regular part of the late-inning mix.
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Dodgers' Yoshinobu Yamamoto: Blanks Yanks in no-decision
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Yamamoto came away with a no-decision in Friday's 2-1 extra-innings win over the Yankees, allowing two hits and two walks over seven scoreless innings. He struck out seven.
The 25-year-old right-hander was brilliant in his longest scoreless outing in MLB so far, generating 33 called or swinging strikes among his season-high 106 pitches, but neither offense was able to put runs on the board until the 11th inning. Yamamoto will take a 3.00 ERA, 1.07 WHIP and 83:16 K:BB through 72 innings into his next start, which lines up to come at home next weekend against the Royals.
Dodgers' Clayton Kershaw: Touches 90 mph in sim game
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Kershaw (shoulder) hit 90 mph during a two-inning simulated game Friday, Jack Harris of the Los Angeles Times reports.
Friday's session was the second simulated game for Kershaw. The velocity he showed is a good sign that the veteran southpaw is progressing well in his recovery from his offseason shoulder surgery. Kershaw will throw another simulated game next week, though it's not yet certain when he will begin a minor-league rehab stint.
Vargas went 1-for-4 with a double, a walk, a stolen base and a run in Thursday's 11-7 victory versus Pittsburgh.
Vargas started in left field and batted eighth in the order. He hit safely in his fourth straight game with a fourth-inning double and also stole a base and scored after reaching on a fielder's choice in the fifth. Vargas has held his own with a .250/.318/.550 slash line, a homer, three doubles, three RBI, five runs and a steal over 22 plate appearances this season. He's currently on the short side of a platoon with Jason Heyward -- Vargas has started each of Los Angeles' past three games against a left-handed starter while sitting out the team's past four contests against a right-hander.
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Dodgers' Teoscar Hernandez: Homers in three-hit game Thursday
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Hernandez went 3-for-5 with a solo home run, a double and three total runs scored in an 11-7 victory versus the Pirates on Thursday.
Hernandez broke a 4-4 tie with a solo blast in the fifth inning, and Los Angeles never trailed again. The long ball snapped a 10-game stretch without a homer for the veteran outfielder, and after a hot start to the season, he's gone deep just twice over his past 23 contests. However, Hernandez still ranks second on the Dodgers with 13 homers and 39 RBI overall.
