Led by Yasmani Grandal, the Los Angeles Dodgers appeared well on their way to a series win over the Philadelphia Phillies but instead they lost to the Philadelphia Phillies, 7-4, in 16 innings.
Kiké Hernandez made his pitching debut in the bottom of the 16th and was ultimately done in by issuing back-to-back walks with one out that led to Trevor Plouffe delivering a walk-off home run.
The Dodgers jumped out to a lead thanks to Grandal taking Aaron Nola deep from both sides of the plate, and each time to right-center field.
Grandal’s first blast extended the Dodgers’ lead to 2-0 in the third inning, and his shot in the fourth pushed it out to 3-0. It marked the fourth time in Grandal’s career he homered as a right- and left-handed batter in the same game.
He’s accomplished as much once in each of his three seasons with the Dodgers.
Joc Pederson made it a third consecutive inning with a run scored, as he ended a 10-pitch at-bat with an opposite-field RBI double. The Phillies’ right-hander did collect five strikeouts but allowed the three runs, five hits (two home runs) in just five innings of work.
Where Nola struggled, Kenta Maeda was dominant from the start, however faltered late. He retired the first 11 batters faced before his perfect game was broken up by Odubel Herrera’s base hit.
Nick Williams’ solo home run in the fifth inning ended Maeda’s bid for a shutout, and the Phillies got to him in the seventh. A leadoff single was followed by an RBI double, and Jorge Alfaro’s two-run home run tied the game with two outs in the inning.
The Dodgers bullpen kept them in the game until they simply ran out of options, prompting Hernandez taking the mound.
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