Stripling makes most of rotation turn

Ross Stripling not only wasn’t supposed to be in the Dodgers starting rotation this season, he wasn’t supposed to be in a Dodgers uniform.

He was traded to the Angels, then he wasn’t. He was sent to the bullpen, then David Price elected not to play this year and look who got the Game 2 start, as well as a 9-1 win over the Giants on Friday night at Dodger Stadium.

Max Muncy homered twice, Justin Turner drove in two runs and Mookie Betts drove in his first run for the Dodgers, while Stripling allowed four hits over seven efficient innings, tarnished only by a Jaylin Davis home run leading off the third inning.

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Stripling struck out seven without a walk, repeatedly enticing Giants batters to chase pitches above the strike zone when he wasn’t fooling them with a new and improved changeup refined during the break.

So, two games into the season, the Dodgers fill in for a pair of Cy Young Award winners with 22-year-old rookie Dustin May and a 30-year-old swingman in Stripling and win anyway by a combined 17-2.

“I certainly think we should be impressed, but I don’t think surprised, ” said manager Dave Roberts. “You talk about depth with our club. We talk about it a lot. Starting pitching certainly is a part of that. To see these guys rise to the occasion, not a surprise at all, and opportunities they deserve.”

Stripling, who remained with the Dodgers after the Angels backed out of the trade, praised the front office for building a deep powerhouse.

“In the Andrew Friedman era, we’ve just always had a ton of depth, and this year’s no exception to that,” he said. “Just a testament to the front office, the guys that draft and our coaching staff for developing guys. Our lineup is phenomenal and is going to be a grind for anyone that has to pitch to it. Our starters are built up and we’ve got guys coming out of the bullpen that maybe some people have never heard of that are nasty, like Dylan Floro [who struck out two in the ninth inning]. It’s just our depth and feel like every year we show it off.”

Stripling said he was competitive with the high fastballs and encouraged as Roberts left him in through seven innings even though he resorted to between-innings stretching to loosen his hips and lower back.

“The new [changeup] grip, I had it in Spring Training and got away from it in quarantine and got it back in quarantine and worked it hard in Summer Camp,” he said. “Was able to throw a handful of really good ones today. I’ve faced some of those hitters many times and got a swing and miss on a changeup, maybe a new wrinkle they haven’t seen.”

Offensively, the Dodgers scored in seven of their eight innings, received RBIs from five batters, drew eight walks and capitalized on four Giants errors.

“We stressed them every inning,” said Roberts. “The guys had a plan collectively and it was really good to see.”

Roberts said he was hopeful Chris Taylor would be able to play on Saturday. He was involved in a violent fifth-inning collision with Giants first baseman Pablo Sandoval, but stayed in the game and immediately stole second base.

"Pablo is built like a fire hydrant. I don't like that matchup," said Roberts. “I think C.T.’s going to have some soreness tomorrow because he landed square on his back.”