The Los Angeles Dodgers tied their season-best winning streak with an eighth consecutive victory by defeating the Washington Nationals, 5-3, on Saturday night. The matchup included a second rain delay of the series and one that knocked Clayton Kershaw out after just four innings.
Heading into the matchup the Dodgers were hopeful to get some length out of their longtime ace with a bullpen game on the horizon. Kershaw pitched to contact early and was staked a 3-0 lead in the fourth inning as the Dodgers manufactured runs.
A walk by Max Muncy, single from Justin Turner and Cody Bellinger drawing a free pass loaded the bases with nobody out. Sacrifice flies by Will Smith and Albert Pujols gave the Dodgers a 2-0 lead, and Gavin Lux added to it with an RBI base hit.
“I think you can look back at C.T.’s at-bats, Albert’s taken a couple of those at-bats. It doesn’t matter how hard you hit it, it’s just moving the ball forward,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said.
Retake the lead? You love to see it. pic.twitter.com/OWos5qaJfy
— Los Angeles Dodgers (@Dodgers) July 4, 2021
Hit it to Gavin? Good Lux. pic.twitter.com/8M4vMuh38z
— Los Angeles Dodgers (@Dodgers) July 4, 2021
“I think we’ve been a lot better at that and I know we have it in us. It’s not really small ball, it’s baseball. When we can do that with all the talent and slug we have, we’re as good as anybody.”
With the rain storm approaching, Clayton Kershaw struggled to put the Nationals away after getting two outs in the bottom of the fourth. Starlin Castro’s flare single into center field put two on and was followed by Yan Gomes crushing a hanging curveball into the seats for a game-tying three-run home run.
Play resumed after 1 hour and 44 minutes, and the Dodgers again took advantage of the Nationals’ bullpen and sloppy defense.
After Wander Suero hit Smith with a pitch, Alcides Escobar failed to cleanly come up with a grounder at shortstop. His throw to second base was late and Pujols also reached safely, which was compounded by the ball getting by Ryan Zimmerman.
AJ Pollock broke the tie by beating out a dribbler to third base for an RBI infield single. Chris Taylor delivered insurance in the ninth with a base hit to score Lux, who had walked and stole second base.
Dodgers face quick turnaround
On top of already playing a night game, the rain delay made matters more challenging for the Dodgers and Nationals as first pitch on Sunday is scheduled for 11:05 a.m. local time.
Have you subscribed to the Dodger Blue YouTube channel? Be sure to ring the notification bell to watch player interviews, participate in shows and giveaways, and more!
