Robbie Ray matched a career high with 13 strikeouts, Jake Lamb slugged a pair of home runs, and the Arizona Diamondbacks led 4-1 when the bottom of the ninth inning began.
Yet, in the blink of an eye Thursday night, the Los Angeles Dodgers came away with a walk-off win. Fernando Rodney entered to convert save but failed to retire any of the six batters faced. He allowed a Yasiel Puig leadoff single then walked the bases loaded.
Logan Forsythe drew a third consecutive walk of the inning, bringing in a run and cutting the Dodgers’ deficit to 4-2.
While the right-hander was struggling to find the strike zone, Corey Seager took a big swing on Rodney’s first offering. Seager later explained he wanted to ensure a quality strike was not missed.
He was fooled by a changeup but ended the at-bat with a grounder up the middle that carried into center field for a two-run, game-tying base hit. Seager’s hit may have pulled the Dodgers even but he praised Forsythe.
“You need that one hit, one walk, one run to turn things over,” Seager said. “That’s what Logan did and it changed the momentum a lot.”
Not long removed from being minted an All-Star, Justin Turner was intentionally walked by Rodney to load the bases. T.J. McFarland’s time on the mound was brief as Chris Taylor lined the first pitch he saw into left field for a walk-off single.
“I knew he had a good sinker, so I was looking for that pitch,” Taylor said. “I wanted to see it up and not try to do too much with it.”
With their win the Dodgers increased their lead over the Diamondbacks in the National League West standings to 5.5 games.
