Blake Snell was dominant in his first start back from left elbow surgery and Max Muncy delivered a walk-off single in the 10th inning.
Many of the same troubling signs for the Los Angeles Dodgers remained an issue, including unsuccessful ABS challenges, but they now have consecutive wins after going 1-5 on their road trip and losing eight of nine overall.
The Dodgers now have 34 comeback wins and six walk-offs this season. For Muncy, it was his eighth career walk-off hit during the regular season. He also had one in the 2018 World Series.
The Arizona Diamondbacks and Chicago Cubs are tied for the MLB lead with 36 comeback wins in 2026.
Dodgers 5, Royals 4 (10 innings): key takeaways
Blake Snell exceeds expectations
Snell announced his return to the mound with authority by striking out the side in the first inning. Snell ran his total to six strikeouts through three perfect innings.
He struck out Nick Loftin to begin the fourth, which was then followed by back-to-back singles from Bobby Witt Jr. and Jac Caglianone to put runners at the corners. Salvador Perez’s sacrifice fly tied the game.
A stolen base, walk and wild pitch put two more runners in scoring position, but Snell wiggled out of the jam behind another strikeout. More soft contact came in the fifth inning as Tyler Tolbert led off with a bloop double and immediately stole third base.
Snell kept the game tied between two more strikeouts and a groundout. To that point he was at 71 pitches, which was in line with the general goal Dodgers manager Dave Roberts set of five innings and 75-80 pitches.
But he kept Snell in the game for the sixth inning, and was rewarded as he retired the side in order. Snell finished with one run allowed and 10 strikeouts over his six innings of work.
Mookie Betts shows power
Mookie Betts started the scoring with a solo home run in the second inning. It was Betts’ first homer at Dodger Stadium since June 19. He later added a double that was cashed in by Alex Call on an extra-base hit of his own.
Betts’ third hit of the night was a game-tying RBI single in the eighth inning.
Lineup adjustment
Facing a right-hander in Michael Wacha, the Dodgers lineup had a new wrinkle as Freddie Freeman was moved up to batting second. Roberts indicated it’s likely where Freeman will be placed moving forward when an opponent is starting a righty.
Freeman went 0-for-4 with three strikeouts and one intentional walk.
Call was also in the lineup for his first start since July 21 and it coincided with Teoscar Hernández receiving a night of rest. The RBI double in the seventh inning was Call’s lone hit of the night.
Although Hernández did not start, he pinch-hit for Ben Rortvedt in the bottom of the seventh and drove in Call on a double. It was a turn of events for Hernández, who had been pinch-hit for in each of the last two games.
Evan Phillips, Andy Pages have inning to forget
Evan Phillips issued a one-out walk and gave up three singles in a row erased the Dodgers’ lead. Jack Dreyer entered at that point and although he retired Carter Jensen, Pages dropped the transfer after making the catch and it allowed Caglianone to score from second base.
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 stay up to date on all Dodgers news and rumors!
