The NL West division-leading Los Angeles Dodgers stagger into Cincinnati tonight to kick off a three game set with another struggling squad, the last-place Reds.

The Dodgers will be looking to snap a five game skid, as they have yet to pick up a victory on their current eight game road trip. Los Angeles dropped a two-game set in Oakland versus the A's before being swept by the surging Houston Astros on the weekend.

Not even a dominant performance from Clayton Kershaw could get the Dodgers back in the win column. Kershaw turned in eight stellar innings in Sunday’s game versus the Astros leaving with a 2-1 lead heading to the ninth. The usually-reliable Kenley Jansen was unable to hold the lead and the Astros ultimately won the game on a walk-off home-run by catcher Jason Castro.

The pressure is beginning to mount on Don Mattingly’s club with the ever-resilient San Francisco Giants continuing to hang around. This current slump has the Dodgers clinging to a 1.5 game lead over the defending World Series champs.

There is added tension considering the fact that neither of these teams is likely to qualify for a Wild Card position. It would appear that the Pittsburgh Pirates and the Chicago Cubs would have a stronghold on the Wild Card spots. Ultimately, the playoff fate of these two teams likely hinges on the NL West division crown.

Tonight the Dodgers will once again turn to newcomer Alex Wood to right the ship. Acquired from the Atlanta Braves at the trade deadline, Wood stumbled in his first few outings, but has looked sharp as of late.

He will be opposed by Reds rookie left-hander John Lamb. Lamb will be looking for his first big league win, in just his third career start. The Dodgers previously faced Lamb in Los Angeles on August 14 and tagged the youngster with a 5-3 loss. Wood picked up the win for the Dodgers in that one giving up just three runs in 6 innings. At that time, the Dodgers offense looked like it was starting to gel. They took the last three games in a four game set with the Reds before heading out on this trip.

With each loss, the rumblings of a potential Don Mattingly firing continue to escalate. It is not out of the question that this series could potentially be his last stand. With a payroll topping $300 million after the addition of Chase Utley last week from the Philadelphia Phillies, there is no simply no excuse for anything but a deep run in this year’s playoffs.

The failures from the past two postseasons are already weighing on the Dodgers management. Mattingly for his part, has done the best job he can with the group GM Andrew Friedman has assembled. However, if the team continues to struggle Mattingly could end up taking the fall in a last ditch effort to salvage what started out as such a promising season for the richest team in baseball.

Naturally, the luxuries of a vast payroll bring added expectations. Lately, this Dodgers team simply hasn’t measured up. Will they be able to pull it together? Only time will tell. First pitch is set for 7:05 ET.