Las Vegas Sun

March 19, 2024

Slides for 51s, Dodgers related

Cashman Field 7:05 p.m. Today-Friday Radio: all games on 1460 and 870-AM

Pitching probables

Minutes after losing their own game thanks to missed opportunities, the Las Vegas 51s retired to their clubhouse, watching the parent-club Dodgers do much the same.

The Dodgers and their Triple-A affiliate have taken much the same path lately -- a lot of losing. With Los Angeles losing its eighth consecutive game Tuesday and the 51s falling to Sacramento 5-3 at Cashman Field, Las Vegas manager Jerry Royster lamented the teams' situations.

"The top two teams losing, the reason we're losing is because our guys are up there," Royster said. "Our guys should not be trying to win major league games up there -- not as many guys as there are. It's not how it works. That's not what your farm system is for."

The Dodgers have fallen to 33-37 after Tuesday's loss at San Diego. Their roster includes eight players who have spent time at Double-A or Triple-A this year, many of whom are filling in for injured major league players.

For example, catcher Paul Bako is out with a sprained left knee, and the Dodgers have catcher Mike Rose called up. With Dioner Navarro day-to-day with a knee injury, the 51s are left with Single-A catcher Mike Nixon handling daily duties.

Rose is hitting .167 with the Dodgers, while Nixon's averaging .209 at Las Vegas.

Antonio Perez, who spent last year at Las Vegas, has been substituting for injured Jose Valentin at third base.

"What did he make their team as? Utility infielder. Now he's everyday hitting second. That's how you lose games, but you hope he steps in and he's doing a good job," Royster said. "But it messes up a lot of things. You hope you hold on until your guys get healthy. We're not trying to win a pennant with Edwards and Rose.

"I guarantee you here we'd be looking pretty freaking good. We'd be just fine."

The 51s have lost 18 of their past 23 games.

"I don't even know what our opening day lineup was," Royster said. "All I know is (Norihiro) Nakamura was surrounded by Edwards, he was surrounded by Rose, he was surrounded by veterans like Chin (Feng-Chen) and (Joe) Thurston ... Willy Aybar.

"We're going to be fine. We're going to win our games -- we're six games out. We're not very good at all. Nor are we healthy. But we'll be fine. To panic in the middle of the season when you don't have any of your Triple-A players, that would be really bad."

Outfielder Cody Ross has been one bright spot, hitting .349 in his last 63 at-bats. Ross leads the 51s with 13 home runs this year.

He said that 51s players don't really acknowledge the slump because individual performance is most important at Triple-A.

"It really doesn't matter," he said. "It doesn't take effect. We just come out here, try to do our job, get our work in and try to win some games and play up to our capability, and hopefully one of us will get to go up there and try to show what we can do."

One bad inning overshadowed an otherwise excellent outing Tuesday by starter Ryan Rupe, who gave up six hits and four runs -- three earned -- in seven innings. But he picked up his fifth loss of the year. In the third inning, he gave up four of those hits and all of the runs.

The 51s chipped away at the Sacramento lead, scoring one run in the fourth, fifth and eighth innings. But Las Vegas had runners on first and second with no outs in the second and did not score; in the eighth inning, the 51s left runners on second and third after getting them aboard with just one out.

Sacramento starter Steve Sparks, moved up in the rotation by a day after Oakland activated pitcher Rich Harden, gave up six hits and two runs in seven innings.

Las Vegas fell to 7-21 against American League-affiliated teams with the loss.

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