The Los Angeles Dodgers entered the ninth inning trailing by five runs on Tuesday night against the Colorado Rockies. It was a deficit the Dodgers hadn’t overcome in nearly 70 years entering the final inning, but Jason Heyward and Teoscar Hernández helped them achieve a rare feat.
Heyward pinch-hit for Chris Taylor and pulled a grand slam to right field that hit off the foul pole and cut the Dodgers’ deficit to one run. The Rockies then turned to Victor Vodnik, who gave up a single to Shohei Ohtani and intentionally walked Freddie Freeman before striking out Will Smith.
Vodnik had the Rockies one strike away from hanging on for a win, and appeared to get that but first base umpire Lance Barksdale ruled Hernández did not go around on his check-swing. Hernández then drove the next pitch out to right-center field for a game-winning home run.
Heyward’s grand slam and Hernández’s home run helped the Dodgers make MLB history for the ninth inning.
The @Dodgers are the first team in MLB history to hit both a grand slam and a 3-run HR while trailing in the 9th inning or later in the same game.
— OptaSTATS (@OptaSTATS) June 19, 2024
While the Rockies certainly left unhappy with the call that allowed Hernández to stay alive in the count, they could have avoided the situation entirely by recording three outs before the Dodgers were in a position to make history and take the lead behind a furious rally.
The comeback was reminiscent of Andrew Toles hitting a go-ahead grand slam in the ninth inning of a 2016 game at Coors Field.
Dodgers comeback makes franchise history
Manager Dave Roberts was impressed with the way the team was able to climb back from such a steep deficit so late in the game to steal a victory away from the Rockies, which amounted to franchise history.
Tuesday’s game represented the biggest ninth-inning comeback in Dodgers history since 1957 and their first time overcoming a five-run deficit in the final frame without going to extras since 1929.
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