ATLANTA — The Dodgers have stopped short of holding open auditions for their postseason starting rotation. But they must be praying that someone – anyone – steps forward in the final three weeks of the regular season to fill in the blanks in that rotation.
Landon Knack had that opportunity Friday night at Truist Park. He stumbled instead.
Knack gave up five runs in the first two innings, putting the Dodgers in a very familiar position – trying to dig out of a hole their starting pitcher created. They couldn’t do it and lost to the Atlanta Braves, 6-2, in the opener of a four-game series.
Six of the first nine Braves batters reached base against Knack. Three consecutive hits in the first inning produced one run. A pair of two-run home runs followed in the second inning (by Gio Urshela and Jorge Soler).
Knack had given up four runs just once in his first 11 major-league appearances this season (nine starts), but he gave up that many in the second inning alone against the Braves.
He threw 44 pitches in that second inning and was given the rest of the rainy night in Georgia off.
A parade of Dodgers relievers held the Braves in check most of the night, holding them scoreless on one hit over the next five innings. The Braves eventually tacked on another run against Brent Honeywell Jr. in the eighth inning.
But the Dodgers’ offense didn’t manage much in response.
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Miguel Rojas clipped the Braves’ rookie starter, right-hander Spencer Schwellenbach, for a solo home run in the third inning. Since Mookie Betts returned from the injured list and moved to right field – opening up every-day playing time at shortstop for Rojas – he has hit .342 (25 for 73).
In the fourth inning, Teoscar Hernandez doubled and scored on an RBI single by Tommy Edman (his seventh RBI in the past three games). Will Smith singled with two outs to put runners on the corners, but Gavin Lux flew out to left field.
The Dodgers had just one more hit in the game and didn’t get another runner past first base.
Shohei Ohtani went hitless in four at-bats, striking out twice. That left his pursuit of a 50-50 season unchanged – he has 47 home runs and 48 stolen bases, now with 15 games left to play.
More to come on this story.