The Los Angeles Dodgers which is a team synonymous with offensive fireworks, were left frustrated! This happened on Wednesday, thanks to an unexpected pitching gem from the Washington Nationals. Starter. Does the name Jake Irvin sound familiar? 

Well, in a stunning upset, Irvin shut down the Dodgers’ usually mighty offense. With that, he led the Washington Nationals to a 2-0 victory and marked the first time all season Los Angeles has been blanked. 

Dave Roberts Gives His Due Credit

In a post-game interview, Dave Roberts said, “I think today you’ve got to give Irvin a lot of credit. We haven’t seen him before, he’s got a lively fastball and it played up in the zone.”  Irvin, a relatively unknown name, perplexed the Dodgers with his deceptively amazing pitching. His fastball constantly kept hitters off balance. But this is not it. 

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His breaking ball added yet another layer of intrigue. As Roberts noted, “Against the right-handed hitters he was sort of running it in on us with a little breaking ball.”  The Blue Crew generally unaccustomed to facing Irvin, just couldn’t tap into his arsenal.

This shutout loss was the latest chapter in a concerning manner for Los Angeles. They’ve stumbled in recent weeks, losing seven out of their last twelve games. The generally dominant offense seemed to have fallen apart by a small degree. That has averaged a bare four runs per game during this stretch and hitting a collective .244. Moreover, the bottom of the lineup has been a particular concern and Roberts addressed that too. It leads to the call-up of prospect Andy Pages. In fact, even established stars like Freddie Freeman and Shohei Ohtani weren’t at their best. After all, Ohtani struggling with runners in scoring position.

What Can Improve For the Dodgers?

Albeit the recent struggles, the Dodgers remain on the top of the National League West.  Manager Dave Roberts is pushing his team to maintain a larger perspective. He said, “Remain steadfast. It’s a long season. And I think that you have to kind of trust the process of what you’re doing, and the people that you’re with and working with. And I think we do that as well as anybody. We don’t really ride waves like a lot of other teams do.”

There is no doubt that the Dodgers have a proven track record of dominance and success.  Will they rediscover their offensive magic? That’s yet to be seen. However, one thing is certain – underestimating a lesser-known pitcher like Jake Irvin can prove costly even for a team like the Dodgers.