Dodgers series preview: The smart and the rich

The Dodgers are one of the most successful organizations in baseball.

The Royals continue their rough stretch in the schedule with a weekend series against the Dodgers in Los Angeles. The Dodgers have fused smarts with money to make the playoffs eleven years in a row with three pennants, but only one title to show for it. Going into this series they have the fifth-best record in baseball, but have only played 17 games against teams with a winning record.

Kansas City Royals (40-30) vs. Los Angeles Dodgers (42-28) at Dodger Stadium, Los Angeles, CA

Royals: 4.87 runs scored/game (6th in MLB), 4.01 runs allowed/game (9th)

Dodgers: 4.99 runs scored/game (5th), 3.53 runs allowed/game (2nd)

The Dodgers have gone just 7-5 against American League teams, and are coming off a home series loss to the Rangers. They are 22-14 at home this year, but the Rangers series was their fifth losing home series of the year, all but one against teams with losing records.

The Dodgers have hit the third-most home runs with the highest walk rate and the tenth-lowest strikeout rate. They scored a season-high 15 runs on Tuesday, but managed just three runs in the next two games combined. Teoscar Hernandez and Shohei Ohtani are both tied for sixth in baseball in home runs. Mookie Betts has the best walk-to-strikeout ratio in baseball, with Freddy Freeman eighth in the category.

Rookie Andy Pages is on a tear hitting .404/.491/.575 over his last 14 games. Chris Taylor got off to a dreadful 1-for-35 start to the year, but hasn’t hit much better since then. The Dodgers picked up infielder Cavan Biggio from the Blue Jays in a trade this week, and he has gone 1-for-4 so far in LA. Former All-Star Max Muncy is out with an oblique injury.

The Dodgers are 44-for-55 in steal attempts, and Ohtani is tied for 13th in stolen bases. Defensively, the Dodgers are fifth-best in Defensive Runs Saved, but are middle of the pack in Outs Above Average. Mookie Betts has transitioned well to shortstop and Gavin Lux has given them strong middle infield defense, but the outfield has been below average.

Rookie Gavin Stone hasn’t given up more than four runs in a start since April 7 with a 1.81 ERA over his last eight starts. Opponents are hitting just .185 with a 35.4 percent whiff rate against his change up, which he throws more than any other pitch, although he also throws a sinker, 95 mph four-seamer, a slider, cutter, and curve. He has the 11th-highest soft-contact rate in baseball.

Yoshinobu Yamamoto is also technically a rookie, although he was a three-time Pacific League MVP Award winner in Japan. He had a rough debut start in the States, but has been sharp since then, and tossed seven shutout innings in his last start against the Yankees, allowing just two hits. Yamamoto has not given up a home run since May 13. He throws a 95 mph fastball, and relies a lot on his splitter, getting a groundball rate of 48.7 percent. He also throws a curve, cutter, sinker, and slider.

Tyler Glasnow was acquired in a blockbuster deal last winter from the Rays. He has a 1.88 ERA in four career starts against the Royals. Lefties have hit him much better than righties, who haven’t had much of a chance, batting just .169/.220/.265 against him. He has been better on the road (2.45 ERA) than at home (4.07). Glasnow has the second-best strikeout rate in baseball, using a four-seamer, slider, and one of the best curves in the game.

Dodgers relievers have a 3.26 ERA, fourth-best in baseball. While they have spent money elsewhere, the bullpen is made up of arms acquired as cheap pickups from other organizations. Closer Evan Phillips missed a month due to injury, and has converted all nine of his save opportunities, although he did give up three runs in an outing last week. Alex Vesia has the ninth-best strikeout rate among all relievers and the highest flyball rate in baseball with opponents hitting just .103/.228/.217 against him. Veteran Daniel Hudson has the seventh-lowest walk rate in baseball, and hasn’t given up a run since May 3.

The Royals found out against the Yankees that facing the best teams in baseball is a challenge, but it will be even more difficult in historic Dodger Stadium. The Dodgers are a smart, wealthy, well-run organization, but they’ve stumbled against a few teams. The Royals will send their three best pitchers to the mound this series, giving them their best shot at a successful series.