It was one of those dark cloud/silver lining things. The National League West first-place Los Angeles Dodger lost their second consecutive game on a second consecutive walk-off win by the American League Central fourth-place Detroit Tigers at a sold out Comerica Park by a score of 4-3 on Sunday afternoon, although this one in the bottom of the ninth inning, not the tenth.

Regardless, it was their second consecutive failure of epic proportion and one that Dodgers manager Dave Roberts yet again called “frustrating,” which has become his postgame mantra over the last week.

“Ahh, yeah, it’s certainly a frustrating one, a way to finish off the first half,” Roberts told SportsNet LA’s Kirsten Watson. “Umm, you know, today was tough because you only have so many options and you’re trying to get the most out of guys, and, you know, put up three runs in the first inning, I felt great about getting a lead.

“Unfortunately, we couldn’t tack on, you know, the other eight innings. Had some opportunities [more of that mantra thing], and umm, you know, they just crawled their way back into the game, and, you know, you look at the ninth inning and we have no one left available, umm, you know, (Dodgers right-hander Daniel) Hudson‘s not available, no one else is available. And so, if you shoot (Dodgers left-hander Alex) Vesia right there, you’ve got a position player pitching the tenth inning,” Roberts added, once again trying to justify his questionable decisions.

The number one questionable decision (and unasked postgame question) of Roberts was why he pulled 29-year-old starting right-hander Brent Honeywell, who had been added to the Dodgers 40-man and active rosters only hours before first pitch. The Dodgers acquired the Augusta, GA native and second-round draft pick in 2014 by the Tampa Bay Rays out of from Walters State Community College in Morristown, TN off waivers from the Pittsburgh Pirates on Saturday.

Honeywell spent parts of three seasons in the majors with four different teams, including two games with the Pirates this season. He allowed no runs and only one hit (a single) in his 3.0-inning Dodgers debut, during which he did not issue a walk and struck out two. But here’s the thing. The 6′-2″ 195-pound hard-throwing right-hander made only 36 pitches (24 for strikes) in his Roberts-cut-short Dodgers debut. These are Clayton Kershaw-like numbers. Simply put, Honeywell was dominating the Tigers and most certainly still had gas left in the tank.

“He threw strikes, he kept guys off balance, we didn’t know if we were going to get one inning or two innings, let alone three,” Roberts said of Honeywell. “I give him a lot of credit. He flew in last night and threw up three zeroes, and left the ballgame with a lead.”

The question is why did he leave the ballgame after only 36 very efficient pitches?

Unfortunately, the Dodgers bullpen imploaded for a second consecutive game, with 32-year-old Dodgers left-hander Ryan Yarbrough allowing two runs on five hits with two walks and no strikeouts in his 2.2 innings of relief of Honeywell. Whereas 30-year-old Dodgers right-hander Michael Petersen and 30-year-old Dodgers left-hander Anthony Banda were able to keep it a 3-2 Dodgers lead heading into the bottom of the ninth, 29-year-old beleagered Dodgers right-hander Yohan Ramírez was not. Ramírez, allowed two runs on three hits, including a leadoff triple by Tigers shortstop and former Dodger Zach McKinstry, without recording an out, to give Detroit their second walk-off win in as many days.

The next burning question for Dodger fans is: When will the Dodgers accept that the Yohan Ramírez experiment is a complete bust and designate him for assignment?

Stay tuned…

Play Ball!

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