Tonight at 10:10 p.m. ET the Los Angeles Dodgers (59-47) will host the Atlanta Braves (58-48) in the first of a three-game series in L.A. that can be seen on MLB Network or live streamed by clicking this link. Dodgers fans can listen to the radio broadcast on 570 Fox Sports LA while Braves fans can tune in on WCNN 680. The Dodgers will send out Josh Beckett (6-5, 2.52 ERA) against Aaron Harang (9-6, 3.31 ERA).
The Dodgers enter this series riding high off a three-game sweep of their main National League West rivals, the San Francisco Giants, then a day off.
"You make enough of a statement by winning three games," manager Don Mattingly said. "Obviously it's something. That's all it is at that point because you have a lot of baseball to play. We're going to see these guys again. They're not going anywhere."
Despite all the winning, there is some concern about Beckett, who was shelled by the Pittsburgh Pirates in his first start coming back from a hip ailment. Beckett, though, said his previous injury wasn't a factor in the rough performance.
"I was ready to pitch," Beckett said. "The trainers cleared me. The doctors cleared me. I just didn't pitch well and I put the guys coming in behind in a tough spot because they had to pitch way too many innings."
Beckett's counterpart, Harang, doesn't have the name recognition of Beckett, but his teammate Freddie Freeman believes he's a more intimidating figure. "He's an imposing figure on that mound," Freeman said.
"He's been doing it his whole career, and he came over and he's doing it again. He's thrown 200 innings, it seems like, every single year he's been out there, and he's getting 15-16 wins a few times. So what he's doing this year is no surprise to all of us."
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