There was one point this season where the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim seemed in better shape than the Los Angeles Dodgers. The Angels surged out of the gates, led by two-way star Shohei Ohtani living up to the hype and then some. The Dodgers stumbled, hampered by injuries and poor performance.
Everything has changed since mid-May, however, and the two teams now resemble something much closer to what they have been in recent years. The Dodgers enter play Friday tied for first place in the National League West. Meanwhile, Angels have fallen off a cliff over the past month.
The team from Anaheim has gone 7-15 over their past 22 games, most of that while Ohtani has been on the disabled list. The Japanese phenom, who wowed as both a starting pitcher and designated hitter early in the season, was sidelined in early June with an elbow injury.
Ohtani was later diagnosed with a grade-2 UCL sprain, which many feared would lead to Tommy John Surgery. However, he received alternative treatment and returned on July 3 exclusively as a designated hitter until further notice.
The Dodgers send Ohtani’s countryman Kenta Maeda to the mound Friday. Maeda recently said he is looking forward to facing another Major Leaguer from Japan.
Maeda looks to continue one of the hottest stretches of his career. He threw a seven-inning, two-run gem against the Colorado Rockies last Saturday, but got the loss as the Dodgers offense stumbled. Overall this season, he is 5-5 with a 3.36 ERA, 3.01 FIP and 1.28 WHIP while striking out 89 and walking 29 in 75 innings.
Maeda is 1-1 in two career starts against the Angels. He has allowed four runs on nine hits in 11 career innings against Anaheim.
While this is the first time that Maeda is facing Ohtani in the United States, he did face him back in Japan, with Ohtani going 2-for-7 with four strikeouts.
The Angels counter with Felix Peña, in his first season in Orange County. Peña spent parts of 2016 and 2017 as a reliever for the Cubs before getting traded to the Angels.
In 17 innings with the Angels, Peña has a pedestrian 3.71 ERA, allowing seven runs on 20 hits. However, he has also gathered 19 strikeouts to only five walks in his time in Anaheim.
Peña has not allowed a run in three career innings against the Dodgers. All of those came out of the Cubs bullpen.
A preview for an Angels series would not be complete without mention of Mike Trout. Trout is still putting up ridiculous numbers to further solidify his case for best player in baseball. In 2018, he is hitting an absurd .310/.456/.627 with a league-leading 200 OPS+.
He will likely join Matt Kemp soon as a starter in the All-Star Game in Washington, D.C. Kemp had cooled off lately before exploding for a five-hit, four-RBI night Monday against the Pittsburgh Pirates. His .318 batting average and .911 on-base plus slugging percentage remain some of the best marks in baseball aside from Trout.
Dodgers lineup:
LF: Joc Pederson
1B: Max Muncy
3B: Justin Turner
CF: Cody Bellinger
DH: Matt Kemp
C: Yasmani Grandal
SS: Chris Taylor
RF: Yasiel Puig
2B: Chase Utley
Angels lineup:
RF: Kole Calhoun
SS: Andrelton Simmons
CF: Mike Trout
LF: Justin Upton
1B: Albert Pujols
DH: Shohei Ohtani
3B: Luis Valbuena
2B: Ian Kinsler
C: Jose Briceño
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