Willkommen! » The Dodger Stadium mound just won’t look right on openin

LOS ANGELES (AP) —g day without Clayton Kershaw standing on it.First base will also look pretty weird for the Arizona Diamondbacks without Paul Goldschmidt on the bag.For the first time since 2010 http://www.marlinsfanproshop.com/authentic-starlin-castro-jersey , Kershaw won’t be the Dodgers‘ opening day starter when they face the Diamondbacks on Thursday.And for the first time since 2011, Goldschmidt won’t be Arizona’s first baseman when a new season begins.Shoulder inflammation is sidelining Kershaw for at least a couple of weeks, sending the two-time defending NL champions into their quest for a third straight World Series trip without the superstar lefty who has been the cornerstone of their rotation for this entire decade.Kershaw’s streak of eight straight opening day starts was the longest in the history of a franchise established in 1883. He has won five of those starts, also a Dodgers record, and has posted a sparkling 1.05 ERA on opening days.For a little perspective, the Dodgers’ last opening day starter not named Kershaw was Vicente Padilla, who has been out of the majors for nearly seven years.That’s an awfully daunting legacy facing Hyun-Jin Ryu, who takes the mound for the Dodgers against the Diamondbacks. But the South Korean left-hander is looking forward to the honor against former Dodgers star Zack Greinke and the Diamondbacks.“It’s definitely special,” Ryu said through a translator after the announcement. “I wasn’t thinking about it, nor was it my priority.”Another celebratory opening day in Chavez Ravine matches two NL West rivals with playoff aspirations.While Los Angeles is a solid favorite to extend its streak of six consecutive division titles, the Diamondbacks have plenty of uncertainty behind the 35-year-old Greinke, who will make his third opening day start in his four years with Arizona.Although the Diamondbacks still have a solid talent base and promising prospects, they’re establishing a new identity this summer after the offseason departures of Goldschmidt and Patrick Corbin. Goldschmidt was traded to St. Louis before he could hit free agency, leaving the D-backs without their most popular player and a six-time All-Star.Arizona’s transition wasn’t helped Monday when Steven Souza Jr. Justin Bour Jersey , Arizona’s probable cleanup hitter, stepped awkwardly on home plate and badly injured his left knee, sending him into season-ending surgery.“A really unfortunate situation for us and for him, but we’re going to be behind him,” Arizona manager Torey Lovullo said. “Moving forward, we’ve been built for this. We have some depth. We have a situation where some guys are going to get some opportunities to step in and get a number of at-bats and help us win baseball games.”The Diamondbacks also will see a familiar face in the home dugout: Outfielder A.J. Pollock signed with the Dodgers in January after seven big league seasons with Arizona, which drafted him in 2009.Los Angeles fans might take a while to warm up to the former divisional foe, particularly since Pollock arrived during the same offseason as the departure of Yasiel Puig, likely the Dodgers’ most popular player among the faithful.The game also should mark the official return of Corey Seager, who is back from two major surgeries and determined to resume his once-ascendant career.The Dodgers shortstop was the 2016 NL Rookie of the Year and an All-Star in his first two big league seasons, but he played in just 26 games last season before he sprained a ligament in his right arm and had Tommy John surgery. He then underwent arthroscopic hip surgery last August, and he missed the entirety of the Dodgers’ second World Series run.Other than a few judicious additions, the Dodgers have largely the same roster that made two straight World Series, only to lose twice on its home field. The Dodgers’ depth and experience should provide the foundation for another strong season — particularly once Kershaw and injured Rich Hill return to their rotation.“We feel good about where we’re at http://www.marlinsfanproshop.com/authentic-starlin-castro-jersey ,” Justin Turner said. “Everybody who’s healthy is feeling really good, and our pitchers are all trending up.” Lots of hit batsmen and free passes for both teams in the sloppy series opener."With their 7-2 loss to the Cubs on Monday night, the Marlins dropped to 4-13 on the young season. They now have sole possession of the worst record in Major League Baseball. Burdened with a stagnant offense and overtaxed bullpen, there isn’t much reason to expect a change in their fortunes anytime soon.YuDarvish: 5.2 IP, 4 H, 2 ER, 4 BB, 8 K (96 pitches)TrevorRichards: 4.2 IP, 4 H, 5 ER, 4 BB, 3 K (96 pitches)All on-field personnel wore uniform No. 42 to honor Jackie Robinson on the 72nd anniversary of his MLB debut. The league-wide holiday is particularly special for the Marlins, whose black executives—CEO Derek Jeter and president of baseball operations Michael Hill—fully grasp how Robinson’s determination created opportunities for them.Your browser does not support HTML5 video.Veteran outfielder CurtisGranderson celebrated the occasion by inviting 42 young kids to the game.Not long after the first pitch, right-hander Trevor Richards found himself in a jam. He loaded the bases Nick Wittgren Jersey , then walked in a run on a borderline pitch to put the Fish behind 1-0. David Bote followed with a two-run double, which would prove to be all the run production that the Cubs needed.Richards didn’t seem to have the usual feel for his signature changeup in this matchup, so he shied away from it. The right-hander had been using it 39.2% of the time thus far in 2019, but that usage dropped to 27.1% against the Cubs with only a few swing-and-misses.Chad Wallach—filling in behind the plate as Jorge Alfaro (ribs) took another precautionary game off—kept things interesting. He settled down Richards the second time through Chicago’s lineup, then brought the Marlins to within a run on a no-doubt solo homer:Your browser does not support HTML5 video.But the Cubs tacked on insurance in the fifth. Richards put on too much traffic with his lack of control, and his middle infielders poured gas on the fire.Your browser does not support HTML5 video.DrewSteckenrider allowed his fourth home run in only eight innings of work. Your browser does not support HTML5 video.Despite excellent stretches from Steck early last season, his job security is quickly eroding.Don Mattingly made the bizarre call to use Wei-Yin Chen for the final two frames. It was his first time working on zero days’ rest as a major leaguer. Arguably his best outing of 2019, Chen surrendered one run on three hits, “improving” to a 18.00 ERA. Most importantly, the lefty’s effort allowed Miami’s high-leverage relievers to fully recuperate from the 14-inning game on Sunday.Here is Mattingly’s postgame presser addressing the poor situational hitting (0-for-7 with runners in scoring position):On a positive note, all four Marlins full-season MiLB affiliates were victorious. In case you missed it, Thomas Hall has the minor league report covering this past week.Back at it again on Tuesday night (7:10 p.m. first pitch). Jos茅 Quintana and Pablo L贸pez are the probable starters.Cubs vs. Marlins box score (MLB.com)Win probability chartFanGraphsFish Picks answer keyCubsOverOverYesCubs