The Los Angeles Dodgers opened their six-game road trip on Tuesday against the Atlanta Braves, in what was the Dodgers’ first matchup with a non-division opponent this season. Alex Wood took the mound at Turner Field for the first time since being traded last season, and he was opposed by Williams Perez, who started on three days’ rest.
Perez needed just nine pitches to retire Chase Utley, Corey Seager and Justin Turner in the first inning. Perez was aided by a Nick Markakis sliding catch to rob Turner of a base hit and end the inning. Markakis then led off the bottom of the first with a single to center.
Daniel Castro’s sacrifice bunt attempt was thwarted, as Yasmani Grandal cut down Markakis at second base. Freddie Freeman followed with a single to center on the first pitch he saw from Wood. The former Braves pitcher then walked Adonis Garcia to load the bases with one out.
Jeff Francoeur’s sac-fly and Tyler Flowers’ RBI single gave the Braves a 2-0 lead before Wood managed to get out of the inning. Adrian Gonzalez’s leadoff walk in the second inning as Yasiel Puig immediately hit into a double play.
After extending the inning with a walk, Yasmani Grandal was stranded by Howie Kendrick, who was called out on strikes. Wood recorded two quick outs in the bottom of the second before hitting Markakis on a 1-2 count. It didn’t cost the southpaw or the Dodgers as Castro lined out.
Joc Pederson worked a nice plate appearance in the third, culminating it by drawing a walk on the 10th pitch he saw from Perez. Pederson was moved into scoring position on Wood’s sacrifice bunt, where he was stranded by Utley and Seager.
CONTINUE READING: Bullpen’s scoreless streak snapped
After being hit a pitch with one out in the bottom of third, Garica went first to third base as part of a hit-and-run on Francoeur’s single to right field. Flowers’ second RBI base hit of the game extended the Braves’ lead to 3-0.
Turner couldn’t make the play on a tricky hop, allowing Erick Aybar to reach and load the bases. Wood walked a run in before getting Perez to ground into an inning-ending double play. Gonzalez singled to left with one out in the fourth, putting an end to Perez’s no-hit hit bid.
Puig followed with a base hit to center and it spelled the end of the road for Perez. Ryan Weber came on in relief and retired Grandal and Kendrick to keep the Braves’ 4-0 lead intact. Freeman drew a two-out walk in the bottom of the fourth, then Seager booted a grounder, with his error putting runners on the corners.
Francoeur collected his second RBI single of the day, and both runners on base soon after moved into scoring position on a passed ball. Gonzalez knocked down a grounder to limit Flowers to an infield single, but one run came across on the play.
Pederson led off the fifth with an infield single, then went first to third base on Utley’s one-out single into right field. Seager’s RBI groundout trimmed the Dodgers’ deficit to 6-1. Adam Liberatore set the Braves down in order in the bottom of the fifth.
Los Angeles squandered a Gonzalez leadoff single in the top of the sixth inning. Yimi Garcia worked around a Castro leadoff base hit in the bottom of the sixth to toss a scoreless inning of relief. An error and base hit immediately put Louis Coleman in hot water in the bottom of the seventh.
Coleman struck out Aybar, then handed the ball over to J.P. Howell. The lefty immediately threw a wild pitch, which allowed both runners to advance. Mallex Smith’s two-run double ended the Dodgers’ bullpen’s scoreless inning streak at 15.1, and extended the Braves’ lead to 8-1.
The Dodgers didn’t muster any offense over the final two innings of the game and dropped the series opener to the Braves.