This story was originally published by Dead Spin
Jack Flaherty returned home when he landed with the Los Angeles Dodgers at the trade deadline last month.
That move likely will feel all the more real on Friday night when the right-hander takes the mound against the visiting Pittsburgh Pirates.
It will be the first start at Los Angeles in a Dodgers uniform for Flaherty, 28, who was born in nearby Burbank and went to Harvard-Westlake High School.
In his Dodgers debut Saturday at Oakland, Flaherty pitched six scoreless innings with seven strikeouts in a 10-0 victory. The win improved Flaherty’s record to a combined 8-5 with a 2.80 ERA with the Detroit Tigers and Dodgers this season.
“Any time you get a chance to help the team win, that’s kind of all that matters. That’s the important part of it,” Flaherty told reporters after his debut. “I’ll take the time tonight and kind of soak it all in. I’m just excited to be here and have a chance to help this team.”
In 16 career appearances (15 starts) against the Pirates, Flaherty is 9-1 with a 2.52 ERA.
The Dodgers could use Flaherty’s help again after dropping two of three to the majors-best Philadelphia Phillies this week. Los Angeles resides three games behind the Phillies in the National League’s overall standings.
The Dodgers particularly were irked Wednesday by an obstruction call on infielder Miguel Rojas that opened the door for a five-run inning as Philadelphia rallied for a 9-4 victory. Los Angeles manager Dave Roberts was ejected while arguing the call.
“That play changed the complexion of the game,” Roberts said afterward. “He got it wrong. That’s just a fact. Again, umpiring is hard. They do a great job. Tonight that play affected the game.”
The Dodgers’ lead in the NL West was reduced to 2 1/2 games after the San Diego Padres used a ninth-inning rally to upend the Pirates 7-6 on Thursday at Pittsburgh.
The Pirates are on a four-game losing streak and have dropped six of seven to fall under .500.
Particularly concerning for manager Derek Shelton’s team is a bullpen that struggled throughout a 1-5 homestand.
Not only did Pittsburgh closer David Bednar blow save chances Wednesday and Thursday, late-inning right-hander Colin Holderman went on the injured list with a right wrist sprain and was not available Thursday.
Thursday’s loss came after the Pirates scored three runs in the sixth inning and two in the seventh on a home run by Joey Bart to rally for a short-lived lead.
“We’re doing a good job of continuing to battle back,” Shelton said. “We had the tying run on base (in the ninth inning) again. The fact that we’ve had leads in four of the games on the homestand in the seventh inning or later, yeah, it’s very frustrating. Not to beat a dead horse, but we have to figure out how to execute to finish teams out.”
The Pirates will send right-hander Mitch Keller (10-5, 3.20 ERA) to the mound on Friday. In four career starts against the Dodgers, Keller is 2-2 with a 5.79 ERA, including a 10-strikeout performance in April of last season.
–Field Level Media
