MILWAUKEE ¨C A day after Craig Kimbrel blew the save for the Dodgers, manager Dave Roberts made it clear that the right-hander would be back on the mound Wednesday in a save opportunity.?
Roberts stuck to his word, sending Kimbrel out in the ninth inning to preserve a one-run lead. This time, Kimbrel was able to come through for the Dodgers in a 2-1 win over the Brewers at American Family Field.
It¡¯s the first time in five tries this season that Kimbrel secured the save when coming into the game with the Dodgers holding a one-run lead.
¡°That¡¯s the beauty of being in the bullpen, you don¡¯t have to sit on it for too long,¡± Kimbrel said. ¡°It never makes it easy, but it feels good to come out and do my job tonight. Fully expect to do it the next time I¡¯m out there.¡±
It wasn¡¯t easy for Kimbrel as the Brewers had the tying run in scoring position, but it was a step in the right direction for the veteran closer. He was a bit more efficient with his pitches, landing a first-pitch strike against all five batters he faced.
Though the Dodgers remain committed to Kimbrel as their closer, there was a sense of relief to watch him lock down the last out of a game. Getting Kimbrel back in top form will be one of the Dodgers¡¯ priorities heading into the postseason in about six weeks.
"I thought that was a really big outing for us,¡± said Dodgers catcher Austin Barnes, who broke a scoreless tie in the sixth with a solo homer. ¡°I think it¡¯s a real big step in him feeling good out there. He¡¯s going to throw big innings for us. Once he¡¯s right, I think he¡¯s going to be real special.¡±
Another pitcher the Dodgers are happy to see get right is Tony Gonsolin, who had a dominant first half of the season, but struggled through a few rough outings coming out of the break. Those hiccups appear to be behind the All-Star now.
Gonsolin followed up a strong performance in Kansas City last week with an even better one against the Brewers, striking out eight and allowing two hits over seven scoreless innings. It¡¯s the first time in his career that Gonsolin has finished a game with seven or more scoreless frames.
¡°I think it was great for him, obviously, to be so efficient,¡± Roberts said. ¡°I think he had another inning in there, too, if he wanted; if we wanted. But all four pitches were working tonight, [he] controlled the entire game. And so for him to go deep, one, continues to build that confidence that he¡¯s had all year long. And number two, we got a chance to stay away from some guys tonight. So very helpful for us.¡±
Gonsolin did most of his damage with his slider and splitter, a combination that helped him become the breakout star of the first half. The right-hander said he believed the slider was ¡°the best it¡¯s been all year.¡±
¡°I felt pretty good,¡± Gonsolin said. ¡°We were working on the slider in the bullpen this last go-around. I came out today and was really happy with it.¡±
Gonsolin¡¯s recent success has also been a sigh of relief for the Dodgers. At 123 1/3 frames, the 28-year-old has blown past his career high in innings pitched during a big league season. This is when most pitchers feel the effects of a long season. Gonsolin, on the other hand, believes he¡¯s still getting stronger, a good sign for the Dodgers, given that they¡¯re going to rely on him heavily in the postseason.
¡°I¡¯m just trying to go out there and do the best I can every time I get the ball,¡± Gonsolin said. ¡°Overall the body is feeling pretty good. I¡¯ve been doing a good job with [Roberts] and the strength coaches and the pitching guys in just managing the workload and figuring out what I need to do when I go out there every fifth and sixth day, whatever it is.¡±
Prior to the game, Roberts said the pitchers who are performing best are the ones who will get the opportunities in October. For the Dodgers to succeed, they¡¯ll need Gonsolin to pitch like a frontline starter and Kimbrel to shut things down at the end.
The Dodgers got both of those results on Wednesday.