The Los Angeles Dodgers got back in the win column to clinch a series victory against the Colorado Rockies, and concluding their short four-game road trip to Coors Field.
Backed by three home runs and a solid start from Gavin Stone, the Dodgers came away with a 5-3 victory.
Shohei Ohtani got the scoring started with a leadoff home run to open the game. It was Ohtani’s 21st long ball of the season, and he has now hit six homers in his last 10 games.
In the third inning, Teoscar Hernández singled, and he was driven home on a double from Andy Pages to double the Dodgers’ lead. Pages then came around to score on a single from Miguel Vargas, making it 3-0.
The Dodgers increased their lead in the fourth inning with back-to-back home runs from Will Smith and Freddie Freeman, giving them a 5-0 lead.
It was the fifth time this season the Dodgers have gone back-to-back, with Freeman and Smith accounting for two of them. Freeman and Ohtani have done it the other three times.
Gavin Stone turned in another strong outing, but started to fall off a bit near the end of his start. Stone worked five scoreless innings before he ran into some trouble in the sixth inning, which led to him coming out of the game and the Rockies scoring their only runs.
Stone started the inning with two walks and a strikeout before a single loaded the bases. Blake Treinen was then called on to replace Stone, who had thrown just 77 pitches.
Jake Cave immediately greeted Treinen with a single, allowing two runs to score, both of which were credited to Stone. However, Treinen was able to end the threat with two ground outs after that.
Stone finished his day with 5.1 innings pitched, allowing two runs on four hits with seven strikeouts and two walks.
Daniel Hudson pitched a scoreless seventh and Alex Vesia allowed a solo home run to Ryan McMahon in the eight inning. Evan Phillips recorded the save.
Chris Taylor heating up for Dodgers?
Also of note, Chris Taylor had a two-hit game for the first time in 2024, and he also swiped two bags in the process. Taylor has seemed to be more comfortable at the plate recently, and noted it was a relief to hit his first home run of the season last week.
His overall numbers are still not ideal, but in his last seven games, he’s hitting .294/.368/.588.
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