Rich Hill turned in one of his best starts this season and David Freese unsurprisingly delivered yet another clutch home run to lead the Los Angeles Dodgers to what turned into a laugher of an 8-0 win and sweep of the Philadelphia Phillies.
Hill didn’t show any signs of lingering effects from throwing a season-high 104 pitches his last time out. His fastball regularly touched 93 mph and curveball took on the various actions Hill puts on the pitch when he’s in a good rhythm.
Hill held the Phillies without a hit through four innings, then gave up a leadoff single to J.T. Realmuto in the fifth. Up to that point, Philadelphia’s lone baserunner came when Rhys Hoskins drew a walk on a borderline pitch to begin the second inning.
Hill allowed a second hit when Andrew McCutchen led off the sixth with a single, but it was the seventh inning when the Phillies threatened to take a lead. Cesar Hernandez’s two-out double prompted a mound visit from Dodgers manager Dave Roberts.
He allowed Hill to remain in the game, and after intentionally walking Maikel Franco for a second time, he struck out pinch-hitter Phil Gosselin looking. Hill finished with nine strikeouts over a season-high seven innings.
Hill wound up being in position to earn the win thanks to Freese lifting an opposite-field solo home run with two outs in the bottom of the seventh inning. The homer was Freese’s second in as many days and third in the past nine games.
He did not start Sunday but took over in the fifth inning for Matt Beaty, who was removed as a precaution to suffering a mild hip flexor. Freese later was part of tacking on insurance as he followed Alex Verdugo’s RBI single in the eighth with one of his own.
A safety squeeze wound up plating two more runs as the throw to first base was wide of the bag and went into right field, allowing Freese to score. Joc Pederson capped off the big inning with a line-drive, two-run homer as the Dodgers sent 10 men to the plate in the eighth.
Prior to Freese’s home run, the Dodgers had a mere three hits. In just his second start since spending five weeks in the Minors, Nick Pivetta looked nothing of the pitcher with a 7.71 ERA.
He held the Dodgers without a baserunner until Chris Taylor’s leadoff double in the third inning. Two strikeouts followed, then a balk, but Pivetta retired Russell Martin to keep the game scoreless. Corey Seager led off the fourth inning with his 15th double of the season but he too was left on base.
Vince Velasquez wound up taking the loss for the Phillies, who entered the series with the second-best record in the National League but have now dropped four games in a row.
