The first-place Los Angeles Dodgers (60-45) roll into Citizens Bank Park Tuesday night to kick off a three-game set versus the Philadelphia Phillies. The Phillies (41-65) currently hold the worst record in the National League, but they have played well of late, picking up wins in eight of their last 10 games.
Newly-acquired starting pitcher Alex Wood (7-6) will make his Dodgers debut Tuesday night. The 24-year old left-hander was amongst the acquisitions made by the Dodgers in last week’s 13-player deal with the Atlanta Braves and Miami Marlins. The Phillies are very familiar with Wood having faced him three times this year while he was with Atlanta. Wood went 1-1 with a no-decision in those contests and was actually roughed up by the last-place Phils in each of those games. Jerome Williams (3-8) will be on the bump for Philadelphia.
The Dodgers are coming off a three-game sweep of the Freeway Series versus a tough Los Angeles Angels squad at Chavez Ravine over the weekend. The club will be looking to extend its winning streak to five Tuesday evening in hopes of maintaining their 2.5-game lead atop the N.L. West. The defending World Series champion San Francisco Giants remain hot on the Dodgers' heels despite dropping two of three against the Texas Rangers in their last series.
Wood, along Mat Latos, was picked up to fill out the back end of a Los Angeles rotation that has been derailed by injuries this season. The Dodgers' brain trust opted for depth rather than swing for the fences at the trade deadline with a trade for the likes of David Price, Cole Hamels, or Johnny Cueto. Any of these top three would have likely cost the club one of its top prospects in pitchers Julio Urias or infielder Corey Seager. Season-ending injuries to both Hyun-Jin Ryu and Brandon McCarthy early in the season basically forced the Dodgers' hand in this direction.
The Dodgers already boast two studs of their own atop the rotation with Clayton Kershaw and Zack Greinke leading the way. Brett Anderson has been solid in the third slot for Los Angeles. The hope is that Latos and Wood will provide an upgrade over Mike Bolsinger and Carlos Frias, which they should. Bolsinger pitched well enough for the Dodgers to stay on the radar, but Frias was shaky at times and is much more suited for a relief role with the club.
Latos looked sharp in his debut for the Dodgers yesterday to help the complete the sweep of the Angels. The big right-hander fired six innings of one-run ball for a no-decision in a game that the Dodgers eventually won 5-3 in 10 innings. Wood will look to follow suit Tuesday night. The first pitch is set for 7:05 p.m. EDT.