The Los Angeles Dodgers were held hitless through five innings and ultimately only mustered four hits in their Game 1 win over the San Diego Padres. One of those was an RBI single by Justin Turner that came in a four-run sixth inning.
For Turner, it marked a 63rd hit in the postseason, tying Steve Garvey for the Dodgers’ all-time record. Turner already held the Dodgers postseason record for most doubles (13) and RBI (36).
His nine home runs in the playoffs rank third behind Duke Snyder (11) and Garvey (10) for most in Dodgers franchise history. Turner presumably will surpass Garvey in hits, considering the Dodgers are guaranteed to play at least two more National League Division Series.
While Turner has proven to be a reliable hitter throughout all levels of the postseason, he’s been historically great in the NLDS. Among players with at least 75 plate appearances in the NLDS, Turner’s .391 batting average is the highest in MLB history.
He’s ahead of the Edgar Martinez (.375), Derek Jeter (.343) and Carlos Beltran (.337), among others. Turner previously attributed his October success to learning from late sports psychologist Ken Ravizza during his time at California State University, Fullerton.
While the Dodgers were a bit slow to get going in Game 1, Turner highlighted the importance and impact of their walks. “We didn’t get a lot of hits early but we took great at-bats. We made those guys work, we took a lot of walks,” he said.
“When our offense is at its best, we’re walking as many times as we’re getting hits. Did a great job of staying in the zone for the most part, getting on base, and that Belli play, hustling down the line, putting pressure on the defense, forced the bad throw.
“Once we got that first run, I think it kind of settled us in a little bit. We took good at-bats all night.”
Turner poised to break Yasiel Puig’s Dodgers record
In addition to likely passing Garvey, Turner should move ahead of Yasiel Puig for the Dodgers franchise record of postseason games played. Puig appeared in 58 such contests, and Turner will surpass that mark Thursday night.
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