LOS ANGELES — Moments when Dodgers superstar Shohei Ohtani appears overmatched in the batter’s box do not arise often.
The ugly, out-of-whack swing Chicago Cubs left-hander Matthew Boyd’s slider produced to conclude a three-pitch strikeout of Ohtani to open the third inning Friday night at Dodger Stadium highlighted how stellar his stuff has been this season. For five innings, Boyd relied predominately on his four-seam fastball, slider and changeup to prevent the stacked Dodgers lineup from getting anything going with just two hits, both singles, and two walks allowed.
The momentum quickly shifted in the sixth inning, however.
In a five-pitch span, Teoscar Hernández took a 3-2 changeup to left field for a single, Boyd hit Freddie Freeman with a sinker and Tommy Edman slugged a changeup on the second pitch of the at-bat for a three-run home run to end the scoreless game. That long ball stood as the difference in the Cubs’ 3-0 loss.
Those are the only runs Boyd has allowed in three starts this year.
“The way he makes pitches, he just doesn’t lean on just one side of the plate,” catcher Miguel Amaya said. “He moved the ball around also to protect his changeup, his spin, and the confidence he has up there to compete. That’s what he did tonight.
“Early in the game, establishing that fastball up top in the zone, away in the zone, protect that slider and that’s what helped him strike (Ohtani) out.”
Friday marked the first time the Cubs (9-7) have been shut out this season. They managed just two hits in the loss as Dodgers starter Yoshinobu Yamamoto struck out nine and walked one in six innings. Yamamoto’s effectiveness left Boyd with little margin for error.
“They have guys that won’t strike out,” Boyd said. “They have guys that will always give you a good battle at the plate. Throughout the lineup they have guys that can hit it out of the yard and working at-bats as well. So they’re a well-rounded lineup. They have multidimensions to that, and it’s always a welcome challenge.”
Edman has been a menace to the Cubs. This has been especially true the last two years with the Dodgers as six of his 12 home runs have come against the Cubs.
“It’s unfortunate,” Boyd said. “Edman’s a really good hitter, and when you put some traffic on base and just miss a little bit, he took advantage, and unfortunately, that was the difference in the ball game.”
The Cubs’ best chance to get on the board in the fourth was eliminated because of a baserunning mistake. After Kyle Tucker connected for a one-out double, Seiya Suzuki singled to right field. Third-base coach Quintin Berry stopped Tucker at third, but Suzuki seemingly expected Tucker to be sent home and a throw to the plate to follow. When that didn’t happen, Suzuki, on his way to second, was caught between the bases and eventually tagged out. Michael Busch struck out to end the inning.
“It’s just not a spot to push it there, and he did, and that cost us an out,” manager Craig Counsell said. “Unfortunately that was really the only scoring opportunity we had. I’m not sure we would have scored, to be honest with you, but obviously that was an opportunity.”
Boyd’s success this season — he hasn’t allowed a run in 16 of 17 innings pitched — becomes even more valuable with uncertainty around left-hander Justin Steele, who is seeking a second opinion following an MRI on his elbow.
“Justin Steele is one of a kind, and regardless of whatever time that he’s out, whatever that may be, you can’t replace Justin Steele because he’s one of one — he’s really talented,” Boyd, 34, said. “That being said, it’s that next-man-up mentality, and we have a very, very talented rotation. We have a lot of experience, and we also have a lot of young guys that are very talented, so for however long Justin is going to be down for, we have guys that can step up and perform in those roles, and we’re excited for that.
“The championship teams, that’s what has to happen so that’s what we’ll do, and we’re lucky that we have depth.”
