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Dodgers Video: Chris Taylor Just Misses Hitting For Cycle Against Diamondbacks

Matthew Moreno
2 Min Read
Joe Camporeale-USA TODAY Sports

The Los Angeles Dodgers kicked off the unofficial second half of the 2016 season with the opener of a three-game series against the Arizona Diamondbacks at Chase Field. With southpaw Patrick Corbin starting for Arizona, Chris Taylor was among the right-handed bats in the Dodgers’ lineup.

The start was Taylor’s fourth with the Dodgers this season and his 11th game overall; he was acquired in the June trade that sent Zach Lee to the Seattle Mariners. Taylor’s start on Friday was unlike any other of his young Major League career.

With the Dodgers trailing by one run in the fourth inning, he crushed a hanging breaking ball to deep center field for a two-run triple. Taylor doubled in the fifth and scored one batter later on Bud Norris’ single to left.

Then with two outs and the bases loaded in the sixth, Taylor crushed a grand slam to push the Dodgers’ lead to 12-4. The home run was the first of Taylor’s career and left him a single shy of hitting for the cycle.

That set the stage for a dramatic eighth-inning at-bat in which Taylor, with Dodgers manager Dave Roberts’ approval, attempted to drop a bunt single down. But Diamondbacks reliever Josh Collmenter came off the mound to make a nice play that prevented history.

Taylor nonetheless finished with a career night, going 3-for-5 with six RBIs:

Matthew Moreno is a journalist from Whittier, Calif., who is a credentialed reporter and is currently the Managing Editor of DodgerBlue.com and LakersNation.com. In addition to covering Los Angeles Dodgers and Los Angels Lakers, Matthew has a strong passion for keeping up to date with the sneakerhead culture. It began with Michael Jordan and Air Jordan shoes, and has carried over to Kobe Bryant's signature line with Nike. Matthew previously was the lead editor and digital strategist at Dodgers Nation, and the co-editor and lead writer at Reign of Troy, where he covered USC Trojans Football. Matthew graduated from California State Long Beach University with a major in journalism and minor in communications. Contact: matt@mediumlargela.com