It took a little longer than expected due to a rain delay, but the Los Angeles Dodgers opened up Cactus League play with a 10-4 win over the rival San Francisco Giants in Scottsdale on Saturday afternoon.
Chris Taylor, Max Muncy, Cody Bellinger and Kiké Hernandez were among the Dodgers’ regulars who made the trip, and all of them fared well at the plate to kick off the spring.
Taylor led off the game by working a walk against Giants starter Dereck Rodriguez. Muncy then followed with a hard-hit single to right, which got away from the outfielder and allowed Taylor to come all the way around to score.
Hernandez later drove in Muncy with a two-out line drive up the middle that was originally ruled a hit but then changed to an error to cap off a two-run first inning.
The Dodgers added three more runs in the third inning as Muncy led things off with a towering home run to right field, the team’s first of the spring. After Bellinger followed with an opposite-field single, Hernandez crushed a home run of his own to straightaway center.
Considering it was only the first game of the spring, the Dodgers’ big league players only got three at-bats apiece and played around five innings in the field before giving way to prospects.
Taylor made the most of his final at-bat in the top of the fourth by launching an opposite-field home run. Taylor and Hernandez have essentially been the forgotten men this offseason due to the Dodgers’ other additions, but they proved right away why they still are going to make a big impact for the club in 2020.
The Dodgers added four more runs in the late innings thanks to a two-run double by Rocky Gale on his 32nd birthday, an RBI double by Zach Reks and a sacrifice fly by Cody Thomas to complete the double-digit offensive explosion.
On the mound, Tony Gonsolin got the start for the Dodgers and tossed a scoreless inning as he makes his case for an Opening Day roster spot either in the rotation or bullpen. Dennis Santana followed with a perfect inning of his own, needing just eight pitches to retire the side.
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