Eric Lauer is back on the mound for the Los Angeles Dodgers on Tuesday night, getting the ball for his second start since arriving from the Toronto Blue Jays. The Dodgers meet the Arizona Dbacks in the second game of a four-game series, and they are trying to keep the week from turning into back-to-back losses after Monday’s 4-1 opener.
That search for a rebound is a little sharper because the Dodgers have owned this matchup so far, going 3-1 against Arizona this season after sweeping the opening series. They also have avoided losing twice in a row since a four-game skid from May 9-12 against the Atlanta Braves and San Francisco Giants, a stretch they would rather not revisit with the series still young. For readers looking for the next Dodgers-Dbacks wrinkle, Lauer’s name is the one that matters most tonight.
He earned this assignment with his work in his Dodgers debut last week against the Colorado Rockies, when he threw six innings of one-run ball with four strikeouts and one walk. That start was a useful answer after a rougher first half with Toronto, where Lauer posted a 6.69 ERA across 36.1 innings before the midseason trade that sent him to Los Angeles.
Lauer has seen Arizona before, too. In April, while still with the Blue Jays, he allowed three runs over five innings in a 6-3 loss to the Dbacks, and he later said his comments about not liking to pitch behind an opener had been taken out of context. He said there was no ill will and made clear he would do whatever the team asked, even if the role was not his preference.
The Dodgers need that version of Lauer now, not the one that struggled in Toronto. Monday’s loss to Eduardo Rodriguez and three relievers showed how quickly the series can tilt if their bats stay quiet, and Tuesday gives them a chance to answer before Arizona can build on the opener. If Lauer gives them another steady start, Los Angeles can reset the series on its own terms. If not, the pressure on the rest of the four-game set rises fast.
