One day after clinching the National League West the Dodgers, with mostly reserves, dropped the opener of a three-game series against the Padres in San Diego.
The Dodgers make their final trip to Petco Park in 2013 as they battle the Padres for a weekend series. But given the celebration of Thursday's National League West championship clinch, the opener of the series on Friday night figures to have the Dodgers' most interesting lineup of the season.
We will likely see several regulars resting. Hanley Ramirez said after Thursday's win, "The plan starts tomorrow. We've got time to let it heal up and get some rest," so he won't start.
Adrian Gonzalez has the minor quad issue, Carl Crawford still has the back tightness, though that is feeling better. Andre Ethier will take batting practice this weekend and is no longer in the walking boot, but he's unlikely to play in the series.
Here is my wild guess as to the starting lineup for the Dodgers in Friday's opener.
Gordon SS
Schumaker 2B
Young 3B
Van Slyke RF
Federowicz 1B
Castellanos LF
Buss CF
Butera C
Volquez P
Be sure to enter your lineup guess in the comments below.
By the way, the Dodgers haven't lost a series at Petco Park since getting swept from Sept. 6-8, 2010, when Adrian Gonzalez was still a Padre. From 2011-2013 the Dodgers are 6-0-2 in series in San Diego and are 16-9 in games played.
Game info
Time: 7:10 p.m.
TV: Prime Ticket