Dodgers 3, Diamondbacks 1
The injuries continue to pile up in a week that has been rife with them. This time it was Madison Bumgarner, who left after four innings with a spasm in his left adductor. His counterpart, Walker Buehler, pitched seven scoreless, one-hit innings. This led the Los Angeles Dodgers to a 3–1 victory over the visiting Arizona Diamondbacks Monday night.
Albert Pujols went 1-for-4 with an RBI in his first game since signing with the Dodgers. Catcher Will Smith added another run with a solo home run in the bottom of the second. Gavin Lux drove Smith in with a single in the eighth to cap the scoring. However, Bumgarner’s departure captured all the attention. It was the second straight Diamondbacks game where their starter left early under mysterious circumstances.
The Early Exit
After the game, manager Torey Lovullo announced the reason for Bumgarner’s early exit — a left adductor spasm. “When I heard that news, I felt like it would be foolish to send him back out there,” Lovullo said. The news arrived during Bumgarner’s at-bat in the top of the fifth, so Lovullo let him finish the at-bat and was getting a pinch-runner ready in case Bumgarner reached base.
Bumgarner said that he had felt the discomfort since pre-game warmups. During the game, he didn’t think it got worse, but “it was definitely there and noticeable.” He understood the sense of precaution, given what’s going on both with the team and league-wide with injuries. However, he thinks he’ll be okay, saying, “I think this will be something that is going to be a non-issue in a couple of days…. Judging on things I’ve dealt with in the past, I feel like this is going to be taken care of pretty quickly. I don’t think it’s a big deal.”
Bumgarner had a hard time describing exactly how it felt. The best picture he could paint was “something that was there that is not usually there. I think it affected my command a little bit, but it’s hard to say. You never know — it just seems that way. (But) it definitely had my attention, I’ll say that.”
Looking Ahead for Dodgers, Diamondbacks
Buehler (2–0) earned the win, while Bumgarner (4–3) took a tough loss. Jansen notched his eighth save with the four-out effort. He also batted for the first time since 2019, and the strikeout dropped his career average to .333. Game Two of the four-game set is Tuesday night at 7:10 Pacific Time. At press time, the Diamondbacks had not yet announced a starting pitcher. The Dodgers will start left-hander Julio Urias (5–1, 3.26 ERA).
Main Photo:
Embed from Getty Images
Players Mentioned:
Madison Bumgarner, Walker Buehler, Albert Pujols, Will Smith, Gavin Lux, Torey Lovullo, Julio Urias
