{"id":27105,"date":"2026-08-04T09:12:33","date_gmt":"2026-08-04T04:12:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/?p=27105"},"modified":"2026-08-04T09:12:33","modified_gmt":"2026-08-04T04:12:33","slug":"justin-wrobleski-makes-ugly-dodger-history-in-another-four-home-run-start","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/?p=27105","title":{"rendered":"Justin Wrobleski makes ugly Dodger history in another four home run start"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><script>\r\n  atOptions = {\r\n    'key' : '644b717812d811d6a1c1fc5b6ccd6fa6',\r\n    'format' : 'iframe',\r\n    'height' : 90,\r\n    'width' : 728,\r\n    'params' : {}\r\n  };\r\n<\/script>\r\n<script src=\"https:\/\/www.highperformanceformat.com\/644b717812d811d6a1c1fc5b6ccd6fa6\/invoke.js\"><\/script>\r\n<br \/>\n<br \/><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content%2Fuploads%2Fsites%2F2%2F2026%2F08%2Fcrop-40178371.jpg?quality%3D90%26strip%3Dall\" \/><\/p>\n<div>\n<p>CHICAGO \u2013\u2013 For most of this season, Dodgers left-hander Justin Wrobleski has been surpassing expectations.<\/p>\n<p>The last two weeks, however, he has succumbed to some ugly franchise history in his first real slump all year.<\/p>\n<p>In a 10-5 loss to the Chicago Cubs on Monday that tied a season-long four-game losing streak for the Dodgers, Wrobleski encountered a suddenly familiar problem.\u00a0<\/p>\n<figure class=\"nyp-slideshow-modal-image wp-block-image aligncenter size-large\"><figcaption>Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Justin Wrobleski, right, gives the ball to manager Dave Roberts, front left, as he is taken out during the fifth inning. <span class=\"credit\">AP Photo\/David Banks<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>For a second-straight start, he couldn\u2019t keep the ball in the yard.<\/p>\n<p>Last week, the third-year left-hander was tagged with four home runs in a six-inning, five-run start against the Seattle Mariners, yet came away feeling like he hadn\u2019t pitched <em>that<\/em> poorly.<\/p>\n<aside class=\"single__inline-module aligncenter wp-block-nypost-editor-primary-tag\">\n<\/aside>\n<p>\u201cI just think going back and looking at it, I still threw the ball pretty well,\u201d he said. \u201cI know that sounds crazy considering the number and the line, but for the most part I think I did an OK job of kind of the things that are in my control.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Problem was, when he returned to the bump at Wrigley Field on Monday, Wrobleski\u2019s long ball problems only got worse.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"nyp-slideshow-modal-image wp-block-image aligncenter size-large\"><figcaption>Justin Wrobleski of the Los Angeles Dodgers reacts after allowing a home run to Michael Busch of the Chicago Cubs. <span class=\"credit\">Getty Images<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Once again, he surrendered four big flies in a 4 \u2153-inning, seven-run start.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>And just like that, he became the first pitcher in Dodgers history to allow four homers in multiple games in the same season \u2013\u2013 let alone in back-to-back outings just six days apart.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI think sometimes teams are gonna have, honestly, good swings off you,\u201d Wrobleski said. \u201cAnd yeah, today that happened. But there\u2019s no excuse. I think I need to be better than I have these past two.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Monday\u2019s barrage began with a first-inning blast that felt reminiscent of last week.\u00a0<\/p>\n<figure class=\"nyp-slideshow-modal-image wp-block-image aligncenter size-large\"><figcaption>Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Justin Wrobleski throws against the Chicago Cubs during the first inning. <span class=\"credit\">AP Photo\/David Banks<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>In a 1-1 count against Seiya Suzuki, Wrobleski climbed the ladder with a seemingly well-executed 94.6 mph fastball, the kind of pitch that has typically been an effective weapon for him this year. Only this time, Suzuki was on it, lifting a two-run shot to the left-field bleachers that left Wrobleski shaking his head.<\/p>\n<p>If that was bad luck \u2013\u2013 Wrobleski said he was \u201cnot super upset\u201d with his execution of that throw \u2013\u2013 then the rest of the night\u2019s damage seemed much more self-inflicted, and raised questions about a potential underlying problems.<\/p>\n<p>In the second, he missed down the middle with a two-strike fastball that Kevin Alcantara clobbered for a go-ahead two-run blast (erasing the 3-0 lead Tommy Edman had staked them to with a home run during their first trip to the plate). In the third, he hung a slider in the heart of the zone that Carson Kelly teed off on for another two-run drive.<\/p>\n<p>Wrobleski\u2019s night, and frustrations, then culminated in the fifth.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>In an 0-1 count, he challenged former Dodgers prospect Michael Busch with a sinker in the zone; another go-to strategy for him this season that has often led to soft contact that keeps his pitch count under control.<\/p>\n<div class=\"single__inline-module inline-module inline-module--newsletter aligncenter inline-module--nypostbusinessunit aligncenter wp-block-nypost-editor-newsletter\" data-source-unit=\"Inline Newsletter Module Cali - Morning Report\">\n<div class=\"inline-module__inner\">\n<div class=\"inline-module__title-wrapper\">\n<div class=\"inline-module__unsubmitted-title-wrapper\">\n<h3 class=\"inline-module__title headline headline--combo-sm-md\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tSign up for the California Morning Report newsletter\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/h3>\n<p class=\"inline-module__cta\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tCalifornia&#8217;s top news, sports and entertainment delivered to your inbox every day.\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><h3 class=\"inline-module__title headline headline--combo-sm-md\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\tThanks for signing up!\t\t\t\t\t<\/h3>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>Alas, Wrobleski instead got barreled up once again, with yet another home run leaving him doubled over in disbelief.<\/p>\n<p>That would be his final pitch of the night. In his last two starts, his ERA has risen from 2.62 to 3.31 (his worst mark since entering the Dodgers\u2019 rotation in early April).<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI think last week, some of [the home run pitches] were better pitches than this week,\u201d Wrobleski said. But overall, just didn\u2019t throw the ball well enough today, obviously. I\u2019ve been pretty frustrated these last two.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>When pressed on Wrobleski\u2019s struggles postgame, manager Dave Roberts argued his \u201cstuff is really good,\u201d and downplayed concerns about the 26-year-old approaching a career-high workload.<\/p>\n<p>Instead, he said, \u201cIt just seemed like they were on everything.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Asked if that was because of predictable game-planning, or Wrobleski potentially tipping his pitches, Roberts was unsure.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThat\u2019s something I think we have to dig into,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhen he did make mistakes,\u201d Roberts added, \u201cit just seemed like they went out of the ballpark.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Wrobleski also left the door open to the potential pitch-tipping theory, struggling to reconcile consecutive starts that have gone so wrong.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI changed the game plan pretty significantly today, and felt like they were still on some stuff,\u201d he said. \u201cAt the end of the day, I just need to continue working and get better. The chips will fall where they\u2019re going to. Just keep going.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<script async=\"async\" data-cfasync=\"false\" src=\"https:\/\/pl30214220.effectivecpmnetwork.com\/9ab3d4df8a7e1a6171e16ddbf732cc19\/invoke.js\"><\/script>\r\n<div id=\"container-9ab3d4df8a7e1a6171e16ddbf732cc19\"><\/div>\r\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>CHICAGO \u2013\u2013 For most of this season, Dodgers left-hander Justin Wrobleski has been surpassing expectations. The last two weeks, however, he has succumbed to some ugly franchise history in his first real slump all year. In a 10-5 loss to the Chicago Cubs on Monday that tied a season-long four-game losing streak for the Dodgers,&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":27106,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/crop-40178371.jpg?quality=75&strip=all&w=1200","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-27105","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-pics-news"],"brizy_media":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/27105","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=27105"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/27105\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/27106"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=27105"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=27105"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=27105"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}