The Los Angeles Dodgers took the field on Sunday afternoon with a heavy heart, honoring Lakers legend Kobe Bryant before the game on what would have been his 42nd birthday.
The Dodgers did what Bryant would have wanted, taking care of business with an 11-3 victory to earn a three-game sweep over the division rival Colorado Rockies. With the win, the Dodgers improved their record to a Major League-best 22-8 at the midway point of the season.
Corey Seager got the offense started early with a solo home run to the opposite field to give the Dodgers a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the first. The home run was Seager’s seventh of the season and was a sign of things to come as the ball was flying out all day.
The Dodgers and Rockies exchanged solo homers in the third inning with All-Stars Trevor Story and Mookie Betts going deep for their eighth and 10th of the season, respectively. Ryan McMahon then hit a solo shot of his own in the fourth to tie the game at two.
Other than the two solo home runs, Dodgers starter Ross Stripling was able to limit the damage. He only lasted four innings though, allowing six hits and two runs while striking out and walking two on 64 pitches.
L.A. broke the game open a bit with two outs in the bottom of the fourth when Joc Pederson and Max Muncy both singled, setting the stage for a three-run home run off the bat of Kiké Hernandez to take a 5-2 lead.
Stripling would have been in line for the win if he completed one more inning, but instead, Victor Gonzalez came in for the fifth and completed two scoreless innings of work to claim the win for himself.
The Dodgers continued their home run parade in the sixth on a solo shot by Cody Bellinger, his eighth of the season as the 2019 National League MVP continues to heat up at the plate.
In his first game off the injured list, Will Smith then joined in on the action in the seventh to make it a 7-2 game on the Dodgers’ fifth home run of the day.
For good measure, L.A. added another run in the seventh on a sacrifice fly by AJ Pollock and then three in the eighth on a solo home run by Max Muncy and a two-run shot by Betts to put the game out of reach at 11-2. Betts now has 11 home runs on the season, which is tied for the league lead.
The Dodgers’ bullpen was fantastic once again, allowing just one run in five innings of work to close out the sweep.
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