Walker Buehler pitched through traffic to outduel Max Scherzer, only for the Washington Nationals to rally in the eighth inning for a 5-2 comeback win against the Los Angeles Dodgers. The Nationals entered the series on a four-game losing streak but have now won two of the first three games.
They put the leadoff man on base in three of the first four innings and had Buehler in a bit of a jam in the first inning as runners were on second and third with nobody out. Buehler then walked Juan Soto in what appeared to load the bases.
However, Victor Robles inexplicably began to wander off second base and was picked off. Buehler then retired the next two batters faced to get out unscathed. The Nationals’ next opportunity to score came when Anthony Rendon led off the fourth inning with a double.
Washington failed to capitalize and finished the game 0-for-6 with runners in scoring position.
Buehler struck out the side in the fifth inning and lived a bit dangerously in the sixth as Joc Pederson made a running catch in left field and Alex Verdugo caught a fly ball at the wall in center field to end the inning.
Buehler wound up getting through season-high tying seven shutout innings, complete with seven strikeouts and four hits and one walk allowed. He finished the outing by retiring 18 of the final 19 batters faced.
Scherzer similarly managed to strand runners early but a two-out walk of Max Muncy in the third inning wound up costing him. Scherzer left a 2-1 fastball out over the plate that Turner deposited over the center-field fence.
The homer was Turner’s fifth in his last four games and first of his career off Scherzer. It was all the veteran right-handed allowed, as he matched Buehler’s seven strikeouts over seven innings.
Turner’s home run may have given the Dodgers a lead but it was his throwing error in the eighth inning on a potential double play that started their undoing. It left runners at the corners with nobody out. Pedro Baez got an out on a sacrifice bunt but was removed after walking Robles to load the bases.
Ground-ball specialist Scott Alexander inexplicably kept each of his nine pitches to Juan Soto up in the zone, leading to an RBI single. Dylan Floro was next to inherit the bases-loaded jam, which he nearly escaped by striking out Rendon.
But a 2-2 fastball from Floro leaked over the heart of the plate and Gerardo Parra crushed it for a game-winning grand slam. The hit was Parra’s first with the Nationals since signing on Friday.
