When the Dodgers left Los Angeles for their final road trip before the All-Star break last summer, they had a 55-36 record and a 7 1/2-game lead in the National League West.
That team went on to win the World Series.
When this year’s Dodgers land in Milwaukee on Sunday night to begin the last road trip before the All-Star break, their record will be a game better and their division lead about the same, pending the results of San Diego’s game Sunday night.
But if you take a good look under the hood, there are obvious — and worrying — differences between this year and last year.
Dodgers second baseman Hyeseong Kim strikes out in the seventh inning against the Houston Astros at Dodger Stadium Sunday. (Robert Gauthier/Los Angeles Times)
In 2024, the Dodgers had one of the best records in baseball against teams with a winning record. After Sunday’s 5-1 loss to the Houston Astros, this year’s team is just a game over .500 — 20-19 — against teams over .500. Those are the only kind of teams the Dodgers will face in the playoffs.
And it’s not just that they lose, it’s how they lose that’s troubling.
In losing three in a row for the first time since mid-May, the Dodgers were outscored 29-6 by the Astros. The sweep was Houston’s first in a three-game series at Dodger Stadium since 2008, when the team played in the National League.
Manager Dave Roberts, however, pronounced himself unconcerned.
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“I know we’re a good team,” he said. “The point is to win as many games in the regular season as possible. I really don’t care who we beat, I just want to win more games than anyone.
“So right now, or even going forward, I don’t pay too much attention to that.”
Look a little deeper, though, and there are other concerns. The Dodgers’ injured list, already as crowded as a Beyoncé concert — it swelled to 12 players with Max Muncy’s addition Thursday — could get even larger this week depending on the health of outfielder Teoscar Hernández and utility player Tommy Edman.
Teoscar Hernández, who fouled a ball off his left foot Saturday, spent 13 days on the IL with a groin problem in May and has been troubled by that injury and a nagging hip-flexor issue that could be behind a slump that has seen him hit .188/.240/.321 over his last 30 games. Edman didn’t play Sunday after a ball off the small toe on his right foot over the weekend. Both players had MRI scans Sunday with Edman’s showing a fracture of the toe.
Dodgers designated hitter Shohei Ohtani is called out by umpire Paul Clemons during the eighth inning of a loss to the Astros at Dodger Stadium Sunday. (Robert Gauthier/Los Angeles Times)
Kiké Hernández has been battling a sore left elbow that affects his swing for about a month. He may have to be shut down to let it heal.
“There is talk about one of those guys potentially going on the IL,” Roberts said. “I don’t see it being Tommy but we’re still kind of trying to figure that out. And then who would we bring [up]?”
With those three unavailable, the only player Roberts had on the bench Sunday was catcher Will Smith. And with the rotation still missing four starters to injury, he gave the ball to right-hander Emmet Sheehan, who had thrown just four big-innings all season.
That left manager Dave Roberts with a short bench. And with the rotation still missing four starters to injury, he gave the ball to right-hander Emmet Sheehan, who had thrown just four big-league innings all season.
Read more: Dodgers’ pitchers get torched during historic lopsided loss to hated Astros
Sheehan went one better Sunday, yielding just a run on five hits over five innings. But his teammates did little against Houston starter Ryan Gusto (6-3), who gave up four hits — including a run-scoring double to Dalton Rushing — over a season-high six innings.
Will Klein came on in favor of Sheehan to start the sixth and after two quick outs, the Astros loaded the bases on a double, a hit batter and an infield single. Klein (1-1) then walked Zack Short on a 3-2 pitch to force in the go-ahead run.
The Astros padded their lead with back-to-back homers from Christian Walker and Yainer Díaz to start the seventh off reliever Tanner Scott.
Jose Altuve closed the scoring with another solo homer off Anthony Banda in the ninth.
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This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
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