Walker Buehler turned in a stellar outing and Will Smith hit another key home run, but Kenley Jansen blew a third consecutive save and the Los Angeles Dodgers fell 5-3 to the San Francisco Giants, which cost them the series.
The Giants jumped on Buehler early and manufactured a run in the first inning as LaMonte Wade Jr. stole third base after leading off with a double. Mike Yastrzemski’s sacrifice fly gave San Francisco a 1-0 lead.
The Giants then had runners on the corners with one out in the second inning, but Buehler worked out of the jam. It wasn’t until the fourth that he managed to retire the side in order.
Disaster nearly struck in the sixth inning on Yastrzemski’s slicing fly ball to right field. Billy McKinney, in his Dodgers debut, came up empty on a diving catch attempt and compounded matters with a short relay throw.
Justin Turner alertly backed the play up and wound up throwing home to prevent Yastrzemski from scoring. Buehler then retired Wilmer Flores to preserve the Dodgers’ 3-1 lead.
Like San Francisco did, L.A. went to work early. A string of base hits from Chris Taylor, Max Muncy and Justin Turner tied the game in the first inning. Though, the Dodgers stalled out after Turner’s RBI base hit tied the game.
Anthony DeSclafani retired eight in a row before Turner led off the bottom of the fourth with a line drive into center field. Smith then followed with a go-ahead home run that proved to be the difference.
Blake Treinen inherited a baserunner from Buehler with one out in the eighth and got through the inning without issue for a successful back-to-back appearance. Kenley Jansen then got a bit of redemption as he bounced back from a second consecutive blown save.
It wasn’t without some stress as the Giants loaded the bases and scored a run when Chris Taylor attempted to go to second base on a ground ball that could have been the final out. Jansen walked in the tying run on a check swing that was a missed call, and gave up a two-run single on his next pitch.
Dodgers manager Dave Roberts was ejected for a second consecutive night.
More Dodgers, Giants
Having dropped the four-game set at Dodger Stadium, the Dodgers will soon get a chance to avenge it during a three-game series at Oracle Park from July 27-29.
Have you subscribed to the Dodger Blue YouTube channel? Be sure to ring the notification bell to watch player interviews, participate in shows and giveaways, and more!
