The Results
Paddack was not nearly as successful because he was inefficiently wild within the strike zone. He was unable to finish batters off, something he has done with ease and regularity throughout the early season. His pitches missed locations in the zone allowing hard contact upon the second and third turns through the Dodgers order.
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Joc Pederson launched a bullet of a home run to open the scoring against Paddack. The 410-foot shot came off of a fastball that remained in the center of the strike zone, while Paddack obviously intended to get it above the belt where Pederson would more likely swing through the ball. The exit velocity on the ball was recorded to be 109 mph with a launch angle of 19.65 degrees.
The other sizeable mistake of Paddack’s outing was surrendering an opposite-field blast to Cody Bellinger on a change-up that stayed very flat. He was unsuccessful in finishing Bellinger off after getting to a 2 strike count. The 409-foot homer had an exit velocity of 105 mph and a launch angle of 23.05 degrees.
He was not offered much assistance by his defenders either. Manny Machado made a throwing error on a simple ground ball to shortstop by Austin Barnes. This error allowed three of the six Dodger runs to be counted as unearned. A quizzical play by Eric Hosmer saw a Corey Seager ground ball somehow get passed him down the line for a double, a runner that eventually scored. Normally he would be able to knock such a grounder down.
Kershaw was not perfect either, however, he experienced far more success than his counterpart. He also surrendered home run shots to Franmil Reyes and Manny Machado. The respective home runs were 419 and 441 feet with exit velocities of 106 mph and 112 mph. These two accounted for the only San Diego runs and were both the result of sliders that did not break enough and hung on the outside part of the plate.
Final Thoughts
The game was an ultimately exciting one with quick pivots and lead changes within the first few innings. Yet, it was nowhere near the pitching matchup that it was purported to be.
A 6-3 Dodgers victory furthers their grip upon the division to five games above the Padres and four and a half games above the Diamondbacks. A long season is still unfolding and the victor will not be determined any time soon.
The final game of the shortened series will see Matt Strahm and Kenta Maeda face off.