The Los Angeles Dodgers turned to Jack Flaherty in the rubber match against the Cleveland Guardians, and came out with a 4-0 victory to win the series backed by his phenomenal outing in suboptimal conditions.
Flaherty turned in his best start with the Dodgers, keeping the Guardians off the bases and off the scoreboard throughout his outing with 7.1 shutout innings, giving up just four hits with no walks.
His strikeout total was down to just six, but he was efficient all game, getting into the seventh inning for the first time with the Dodgers and sixth time this season before he made it into the eighth.
The right-hander has provided stability for a starting rotation that’s remained in flux throughout the season, but he hasn’t felt at his best since joining his hometown club. That may have changed on Sunday as Flaherty was in complete control all game.
Gavin Stone was the last Dodgers pitcher to reach the eighth inning when he threw a complete game shutout against the Chicago White Sox earlier this season.
Flaherty was taken out after allowing a single with one out in the seventh, being replaced by Michael Kopech, who worked out of the inning unscathed.
Guardians’ ace Tanner Bibee was solid, going five innings with just two runs allowed, but he dealt with traffic on the bases, allowing four hits and walking seven.
The Dodgers had an opportunity to break the game open against Bibee, but wound up leaving the bases loaded in the fourth inning.
That small rally started when Mookie Betts tripled to extend his hitting streak to eight games and his on-base streak to 14 games. He ended up scoring on an RBI single from Will Smith, who had three hits in the game.
The Dodgers went on to load the bases with just one out, but Gavin Lux struck out and Andy Pages flied out to leave them loaded.
Shohei Ohtani extended the Dodgers lead to 2-0 in the fifth inning with his 46th home run of the season, making him the only 46-46 player in MLB history.
Ohtani’s 46 home runs this season tied his career high, and he is now three away from becoming the all-time leader by Asian-born players and four away from setting the Dodgers single season franchise record.
Max Muncy added onto the Dodgers lead with a solo home run in the eighth inning and Chris Taylor then singled home Will Smith to make it a 4-0 game.
Evan Phillips pitched the ninth with a scoreless inning.
Dodger Stadium sees record heat
The temperature at first pitch for the Dodgers and Guardians game was 103 degrees Fahrenheit, tying a Dodger Stadium record for the hottest game at it’s start. That previous record of 103 was set during Game 1 of the 2017 World Series, making Sunday the hottest game in regular season history at Dodger Stadium.
One other major difference was the World Series game began later in the day, which allowed it to cool off later during the game. On Sunday, the temperature remained in the triple digits through it’s end, keeping at 103 for the entire game.
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