SEE YA, STREAK
Dodgers suffer first loss in 10 games as Baez serves up tiebreaking two-run homer in bottom of the eighth.
ATLANTA — The Dodgers saw their latest winning streak end at nine, falling short of an achievement that hadn’t happened in more than 60 years, with a 5-3 loss to Atlanta on Wednesday. Braves catcher Tyler Flowers blasted a tiebreaking two-run homer off Dodgers reliever Pedro Baez in the eighth inning.
A victory would have given the Dodgers (75-32) their third 10-game winning streak this season, a feat that hasn’t occurred since the 1954 Milwaukee Braves strung together three of them.
The Dodgers have lost four times since the start of July. The Braves own three of those victories.
“They’re a scrappy bunch,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said.
Making his second start of the season, Brock Stewart paid for one mistake in the second inning. He served up a two-run homer to Braves outfielder Danny Santana. Otherwise, Stewart kept Atlanta off the board during four innings.
Cody Bellinger opened the scoring in the top of the second. He crushed a 91-mph fastball from Atlanta starter Julio Teheran into the Braves bullpen in right-center field for a solo shot. Bellinger became the second rookie in Dodgers history to hit 30 in a season. Mike Piazza holds the rookie record with 35 in 1993.
After Santana took Stewart
deep in the bottom of the inning, the Dodgers offense compiled two runs in the fourth and fifth. Chris Taylor got hit by a pitch in the fourth, stole second, took third on a flyout and scored on a groundout by Joc Pederson. An inning later, Chase Utley stroked a twoout single to score Yasiel Puig, who had doubled.
Atlanta capitalized on a mistake by Corey Seager in the field in the bottom of the fifth. Braves outfielder Ender Inciarte hit a leadoff single against reliever Ross Stripling. The next batter, third baseman Brandon Phillips, chopped a grounder toward Seager. The hard infield of SunTrust Park did not help. The ball skipped late and threw off Seager’s rhythm. He could not turn the double play, and Inciarte soon scored on a single by first baseman Freddie Freeman.
“It was bouncing,” Seager said. “I knew it was going to kick, but you try to give yourself as much space as you can. But it still kicked enough to hit me in the chest. It’s unfortunate.”
In the eighth, Baez retired the first two batters he faced. Then he issued a walk to the No. 8 hitter, shortstop Johan Camargo. Flowers punished him in the next atbat.
“You’ve got the eighthplace hitter, to walk him with two outs, that was probably a thing that he’d like to have back,” Roberts said.
Hill honored
Rich Hill was selected National League pitcher of the month after posting a 1.45 earned-run average in five starts in July. He went 4-0, striking out 40 batters while walking five. He has been dominant since reconfiguring his delivery in June.
Hill is the second Dodger to earn this honor in 2017. Alex Wood won pitcher of the month in May.
Short hop
Reliever Josh Ravin was optioned to triple-A Oklahoma City to make room for Yu Darvish, who was activated on Wednesday. Ravin gave up a two-run homer on Tuesday which raised his ERA to 3.38.