3 Dodgers most to blame for Game 2 loss against Padres

Dodgers most to blame: Bullpen, Dave Roberts

Kershaw gave his team a chance to win, as he left the game tied through five innings of play. The future Hall of Famer went pitch for pitch with Padres starter Yu Darvish, even without his best stuff. You can’t ask for much more if you’re a Dodgers fan, especially given how Kershaw performed in the early innings. He was about to rebound after the third, settle down, and allow Los Angeles to save some of their middle relievers for a soon-to-be evened series in San Diego.

It was Brusdar Graterol and Treinen who each gave up runs — albeit Graterol’s unearned — and cost the Dodgers this game. Los Angeles’ bullpen needed to be perfect on Wednesday night, as unfair as that might sound, and they weren’t close.

Fans can also point to Dave Roberts, who has plenty of arms at his disposal and seemingly chose the wrong ones in relief of Kershaw. It wouldn’t be the first time Roberts mismanaged his bullpen in the postseason.

Dodgers most to blame: Bottom of the lineup

The Dodgers had plenty of opportunities to put runs on the board. While they did get some, they also left so many runners on the base paths. It is hard to ignore the bottom of the lineup.

Trayce Thompson stepped into the batter’s box four times in Game 2, had three runners in scoring position and did not get a single hit. In the second inning, Justin Turner was on base after a single, but Thompson struck out. In the fourth inning, Turner walked on four pitches and Gavin Lux singled, but Thompson struck out again.

Cody Bellinger also left three runners in scoring position in the game and struck out twice but he did manage to get a hit, a single in the seventh inning. Lux also stranded three runners on the base paths.

Simply put, the bottom of the order did ruin any chance the Dodgers had of taking the lead in Game 2.