The Los Angeles Dodgers have been on a roll as of late, and they continued that in their series opener against the Arizona Diamondbacks by earning earning a 3-1 victory at Chase Field.
There wasn’t much hitting for either team as they combined for just 10 total hits, which led to the game being completed in just over two hours.
Diamondbacks starter Robbie Ray has had success against the Dodgers in the past, and that was again the case on Monday night. He struck out nine batters in seven innings of work, although the Dodgers were able to get to him for three runs in the top of the fourth inning.
Justin Turner started the rally with a one-out single, his second hit in the first game back after missing four in a row because of right hamstring tightness. David Freese followed with a walk, putting two runners on for Corey Seager.
He has really struggled against Ray throughout the course of his career, but proceeded to launch a three-run home run to left-center field to put the Dodgers on the scoreboard. Seager now has eight home runs on the season and has been swinging the bat as well as he has all year the last couple of weeks.
The three runs were more than enough for Walker Buehler, who turned into perhaps his best outing of the season. The right-hander carried a perfect game into the fifth inning, although Christian Walker broke that up with a two-out home run to center field.
That and an eighth-inning single were the only blemishes on the night for Buehler. He tossed eight brilliant innings, striking out a season-high 11 batters without issuing any walks to improve to 6-1 on the year.
Because Buehler was able to give the team some length, the Dodgers bullpen, outside of Kenley Jansen, got a day off. Jansen tossed a scoreless ninth to close out the victory, earning his 18th save of the season.
