The Los Angeles Dodgers returned from a successful road trip in the midst of a season-long 11-game winning streak and franchise-best 31-4 run. Their momentum came to a skidding halt, however, as the Atlanta Braves rattled off consecutive victories.
It was the same Braves team that went into the four-game series at Dodger Stadium fresh off being swept by the Chicago Cubs. The Dodgers responded Saturday night, behind 6.1 strong innings from Rich Hill and offensive output in line with what’s been seen this season.
Corey Seager crushed a solo home run off Julio Teheran in the bottom of the first inning, and Chase Utley lined a homer to right field in the third.
The Braves fought back to tie the game in the fifth inning, but the Dodgers answered by scoring in the sixth, seventh and eighth innings. The attack was spearheaded by Chris Taylor, who entered as a defensive replacement.
Prior to Taylor making his impact, good fortune led to the Dodgers taking a lead. Yasmani Grandal and Logan Forsythe singled to put two on with nobody out in the sixth. Joc Pederson grounded into a double play, moving Grandal to third base.
Yasiel Puig hit a tapper up the third-base line that Teheran fielded and threw home. The ball beat Grandal by a few feet, but Tyler Flowers dropped it while attempting to apply the tag.
In his first at-bat of the game, Taylor led off the bottom of the seventh with an opposite-field home run. He then split the right-center field gap for a two-run triple to cap off the Dodgers’ 6-2 win.
“He’s a spark,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said of Taylor. “To come off the bench, hit a huge homer and clear the bases, give Kenley another day, he helps put us in good spots.”
Seager heaped similar praise on Taylor, saying, “It’s special what he did tonight, special what he’s done all year. He’s been a huge part of this.”
