OK, FROM THE TOP
Betts, Turner and Freeman all homer in same game for first time Dodgers injuries mean little when the superstars are leading the way
The Dodgers’ Mookie Betts hits the 200th home run of his career on Saturday against Giants pitcher and former Dodger Alex Wood.
LOS ANGELES » Mookie Betts, Trea Turner and Freddie Freeman have batted first, second or third for the Dodgers in every game they have started this season. That includes the All-Star Game on Tuesday, in which all three represented the Dodgers on their home field. They have been the team’s most valuable players when healthy.
They had not, however, hit a home run in the same game.
That changed Saturday.
Betts and Turner hit back-to-back home runs in the third inning, and Freeman hit another one late to seal the Dodgers’ 4-2 win over the San Francisco Giants before an announced crowd of 47,749 at Dodger Stadium.
“I wish I did it in the same inning
The Dodgers’ Freddie Freeman congratulates Trea Turner as he scores after hitting a solo home run immediately after one by Betts in the third inning.
DODGERS 4, GIANTS 2
Up next: Giants at Dodgers, today, 1:10p.m., SNLA
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LOS ANGELES » Aren’t there times that you wonder how the Dodgers, with a good chunk of their pitching staff on the injured list and two members of their everyday lineup performing below entry level, are running away with the National League West?.
Dave Roberts was asked the question before Saturday’s game with the Giants.
“That’s a good question,” he said with a chuckle. “I think it’s just understanding that what we have in the room that particular night is good enough to win a ballgame. And I think that we do a good job of not having side doors as far as potential excuses, and I think that’s part of it.”
Another potential reason was on
they did it,” Freeman said. “Mookie’s been hitting the ball extremely well. It was just a good overall day for us, a good baseball game.”
The Dodgers (63-30) have gone 26-7 since they were swept in a three-game June series in San Francisco. Their seven consecutive victories, wrapped around the All-Star Game, expanded their lead on the second-place Padres in the National League West to 10½ games. The Giants (4846) are a distant third, 15½ games out of first.
The key?
“It’s always been pitching,” Freeman said. “Our pitching has been amazing all season. We’ve just been hitting a lot better as of late. Scoring a lot of runs, letting them settle in, getting deeper into ballgames.”
On Saturday, left-hander Julio Urías (9-6) turned up the heat over six shutout innings. He allowed two hits and issued a walk to Austin Slater, but the rest of the Giants lineup went 0 for 18.
Urías recorded five strikeouts and touched 96 mph with his four-seam fastball for only the third time in 19 starts.
“I think I found a little something in the last couple bullpens,” Urías said through an interpreter. “Especially in the last two starts — just some adjustments we made. I’ve been able to make those adjustments and every fifth day come out and pitch the way I have.”
Betts led off the game with a 12-pitch at-bat against former Dodger Alex Wood (6-8). He crushed the 11th pitch a
Dodgers starter Julio Urias pitched six shutout innings, allowing two hits, in Saturday’s win over the Giants.
few feet wide of the left field foul pole before dumping a single into right field.
The Dodgers couldn’t cash in the run. In his next at-bat, Betts did the job himself. His 22nd home run of the season came on a 3-and-2 count and gave the Dodgers a 1-0 lead.
With the hit, Betts also became the 17th active player with 200 career home runs. He downplayed the milestone with traditional humility, saying it meant “nothing.” But it stands as a testament to his longevity.
Betts needed only 17 days off after cracking a rib behind his right pectoral muscle. Since returning, he has five home runs in 16 games.
“The training staff did an amazing job getting me back out there quick,” Betts said. “Our hitting guys are, I think, the best in the big leagues. They keep me going. I couldn’t ask for better teammates keeping me going. I know I’ve had some ups and some downs, but they believe in me, so I think that’s all I can really ask for. I know I’m going to play every day and do my best.”
Turner hit his 15th home run — also on a 3-and-2 count — on the very next atbat.
Urías made the 2-0 lead stand up. He induced only seven swings and misses among his 91 pitches, but allowed relatively little hard contact. The final batter Urías faced, David Villar, looked at three pitches in the strike zone for the final out of the sixth inning.
Cody Bellinger singled and scored on a triple by Gavin Lux in the sixth inning. Freeman’s 15th home run of the season, against reliever John Brebbia in the seventh inning, gave the Dodgers a 4-0 lead.
Closer Craig Kimbrel had pitched on back-toback nights to begin the four-game series, so righthander Reyes Moronta and left-hander David Price tagteamed the ninth inning. The Giants scored twice, but it was too little, too late.
Price was credited with his first save of the season when he caught Slater looking at a backdoor sinker for strike three to end the game.