The Los Angeles Dodgers had their winning streak and stretch of wins in games they held a lead snapped at nine and an MLB record 53, respectively, but bounced back to take the rubber match from the Atlanta Braves at SunTrust Park.
As a result, the Dodgers forge ahead without having lost a series since the Washington Nationals took two of three at Dodger Stadium from June 5-7. The Braves got to Alex Wood in the first inning behind consecutive two-out hits — a single by Freddie Freeman and Tyler Flowers’ RBI double — to take a 1-0 lead.
That held until the third inning, when rookie starter Sean Newcomb couldn’t get out of his own way. Chris Taylor and Corey Seager connected on back-to-back singles to put two runners on with nobody out.
Newcomb then walked Justin Turner to load the bases, managed to strike out Cody Bellinger, but walked Logan Forsythe to bring in the tying run.
Two batters after Yasiel Puig led off the fifth inning with a walk, Taylor drove a fastball to straightaway center field for a two-run home run that gave the Dodgers a 3-1 lead. The home run was Taylor’s 13th this season, which ranks fifth on the team.
He later singled for a 10th multi-hit performance in 18 games since the All-Star break. The Dodgers extended their lead in the sixth on Turner’s sacrifice fly, while Kiké Hernandez’s RBI single and Puig’s double play ball each drove in a run in the seventh.
Wood fought a dip in velocity and worked out of multiple jams to hold the Braves to just the one run over six innings. The University of Georgia product threw an efficient 87 pitches, issued two walks and struck out a pair en route to earning his 13th win of the season.
