CHICAGO -- The Dodgers never held much of a comfortable lead, but they led all the same through the top of the sixth inning on Sunday afternoon. Then the wheels fell off.
Emmet Sheehan, who had cruised the first two times through the White Sox order, was knocked out of the game after surrendering a home run, a single and an RBI double in quick succession. Jack Dreyer relieved him but could not halt Chicago's momentum, serving up a pair of two-run homers.
The White Sox had turned the game on its head, scoring six runs in the sixth inning before recording an out. The Dodgers tacked on a run apiece in each of the last three innings, but it proved too much to overcome as they lost the game, 6-4, and the weekend series at Rate Field.
Sheehan took the mound with the Dodgers on top after Freddie Freeman's solo homer in the first inning, and that lead held up through five strong frames in which the 26-year-old right-hander struck out eight and allowed only three baserunners.
The onslaught in the sixth inning began with Sheehan leaving a fastball to Sam Antonacci high in the zone. Miguel Vargas worked a full count before singling and stealing second base. Sheehan fell behind 2-1 to Andrew Benintendi, who brought home Vargas.
"I got to look at it more," Sheehan said. "But I felt like I was executing pretty good. The stuff still felt good. They put a couple good swings on it."
Once Sheehan was out of the game, Colson Montgomery and Chase Meidroth became the fourth and fifth hitters to take Dreyer deep since the southpaw returned from an IL stint due to inflammation in his left shoulder. Dreyer surrendered four homers overall in his rookie season last year.
"I think they just jumped on a couple fastballs, and he didn't necessarily mix probably like he would if he could do it again," said bench coach Danny Lehmann, who served as acting manager with Dave Roberts away from the team for his daughter's college graduation.
The Dodgers' pitching staff has been arguably the team's most consistent strength this season. They've allowed 245 runs, the fewest in the Majors. But in the past week, they've been on the wrong side of quite a few big innings.
In the Dodgers' past seven games, opposing teams have scored five or more runs in an inning four times. The Angels had a six-run seventh inning on June 7 at Dodger Stadium. The Pirates built a five-run eighth inning on Wednesday at PNC Park. And the White Sox did it twice over the weekend, scoring seven runs in the fifth on Friday before their six-run outburst on Sunday.
“Out of the bullpen specifically, I think maybe some strike-throwing, a few more walks that we’re not used to over the last six weeks or so, because they’ve been really, really good," Lehmann said. "We’ve gotten bit by the long ball, obviously in Pittsburgh, and here tonight. But overall, it’s more the strike throwing and just getting ahead of guys and doing what they’re supposed to do.”
At the same time, the Dodgers' offense has not been consistent with situational hitting. L.A. ranks second in the Majors with 386 runs scored, but there have been times when the team is unable to capitalize on the opportunities it's creating. On Sunday, the Dodgers went 0-for-7 with runners in scoring position and left eight on base, including runners on the corners to end the game.
The Dodgers didn't completely go away once they were in a five-run hole. They responded in the seventh inning with an Alex Freeland sacrifice fly. Mookie Betts launched a solo homer in the eighth, raising his batting average above the Mendoza line for the first time since March 27. Freeland struck again with an RBI double in the ninth inning, but that was it for the comeback effort.
"When you see numbers of seven, or five, or four, six, those things are hard to overcome," Roberts said after Friday's loss. "When you give one, two, three to limit damage, then you have a chance to win. As good as our offense is, it's hard to weather those innings."
After going 3-3 on their trip through Pittsburgh and Chicago, the Dodgers will hope to leave the big innings for opposing offenses on the road.