It took until the final swing of the month for the Dodgers to secure a winning record in August, a month that saw them drop into second place on a few days before finding their way back on top.
The encouraging part of the month was the starting rotation being at full strength and providing a stronger base should they ever sync up the offense and bullpen to go an an extended run down the stretch.
August results
15-13 record 132 runs scored (4.71 per game, 13th in MLB) 98 runs allowed (3.50 per game, 1st in MLB) .633
pythagorean win percentage (18-10)
Year to date
78-59 record
700 runs scored (5.11 per game, 2nd in MLB)
599 runs allowed (4.37 per game, 17th in MLB)
.571 pythagorean win percentage (78-59)
Clayton Kershaw led the way by winning all five of his starts with a 1.88 ERA, even while having his innings monitored depending on how things were going. Yoshinobu Yamamoto was the rock with six starts, and led the team in innings (37 1/3) and strikeouts (44), as he does on the season.
Shohei Ohtani was the only one of the six Dodgers starters with an ERA over 3.52 for August, and even his 5.71 ERA came with 27 strikeouts against only two walks in his 17 1/3 innings.
Dodgers starting pitchers in August
- Clayton Kershaw 1.88 ERA, 28 2/3 IP, 3 walks, 19 strikeouts
- Blake Snell 2.54 ERA, 28 1/3 IP, 10 walks, 34 strikeouts
- Yoshinobu Yamamoto: 3.13 ERA, 37 1/3 IP, 9 walks, 44 strikeouts
- Tyler Glasnow: 3.45 ERA, 28 2/3 IP, 11 walks, 32 strikeouts
- Emmet Sheehan: 3.52 ERA, 23 IP, 6 walks, 28 strikeouts
- Shohei Ohtani: 5.71 ERA, 17 1/3 IP, 2 walks, 27 strikeouts
Dodgers starting pitchers averaged 5.58 innings per start, third in the majors in August, which added a stability the pitching staff was missing most of the season. Dodgers starters were pitching well and lasting deep enough into games that they earned 13 wins for the month, after notching only 10 wins in June and July combined. Dodgers starting pitchers in August led the majors in both strikeout rate (28.1 percent) and strikeout-minus-walk rate (21.5 percent).
The offense was more middling, mostly without Max Muncy and Tommy Edman, who will begin rehab assignments in Triple-A this week. But Shohei Ohtani (1.020 OPS, 23 walks) and Freddie Freeman (.306/.438/.582) led the way, tying for the team lead with seven home runs. For Freeman, with his best month since May, his seven homers tied his most in a month since joining the Dodgers, and his 20 RBI led the team.
Previous monthly reviews: April | May | June | July
The month ahead
It’s a suitcase-heavy final four weeks of the regular season, with 15 of the Dodgers’ 25 September games on the road. If it’s any consolation, four of the five road series (Pirates, Orioles, Giants, D-backs) are against non-playoff teams before finishing off the schedule with three games in Seattle.
