The Los Angeles Dodgers earned their fourth straight victory and their first sweep of the season on Wednesday night, soundly defeating the San Diego Padres, 13-4, at Petco Park.
The Dodgers’ offense got going early in the victory, scoring three runs in the top of the first inning, one in the second and then a big five-spot in the third to blow the game open.
That five-run third inning was capped off by a two-run home run off the bat of Max Muncy. It came in his first start for the Dodgers after being called up from Triple-A Oklahoma City on Tuesday.
After the game, Muncy expressed some relief with hitting his first home run rather quickly, as seen on SportsNet LA:
“It’s always nice to get the first of anything out of the way, whether it’s a hit, a home run or even a play on the field. It kind of gets the butterflies out of your stomach, jitters gone, so it’s always nice to get that out of the way.”
Muncy knew he’d gotten enough of the ball for an opposite-field home run, which prompted a bat flip:
“I was just looking for something hard out over the plate and he gave it to me. I put one of my best swings on it, and it felt good off the bat so I had a pretty good feeling about it.”
Muncy went 1-for-4 with a walk in the win, although he hit the ball hard three times on the evening. He also made an outstanding play at third base in the bottom of the seventh inning to rob Chase Headley of a base hit.
If the Dodgers continue to see that kind of production out of Muncy, then he could be in for more starts down the road whether it be at third base, first base or either of the two corner outfield positions.