Gavin Lux was on the verge of being largely responsible for the Los Angeles Dodgers suffering yet another loss to the Philadelphia Phillies, but a two-out rally in the bottom of the ninth provided a moment of redemption for the former top prospect.
With the game still knotted in a scoreless tie in the third inning, Lux allowed a routine ground ball to roll through his legs, bringing in a run. The Phillies followed that with consecutive hits against Michael Grove to extend their lead to 4-0.
That held until two outs in the bottom of the ninth inning when Lux hit a walk-off, two-run double. “Baseball is all about having a short-term memory,” Lux said after providing his game-winning hit.
“So kind of getting over that (error) and not taking it into your at-bats, try to forget about it as quick as possible and just move past it, and not worry about it as much. So yeah, baseball is all about having a short memory.”
The walk-off hit was the first Lux has ever had in his time playing baseball. It also was a moment he didn’t truly grasp.
“Honestly, I hit second base and I didn’t even realize it,” he said. “I kind of forgot that it was the bottom of the ninth, honestly. So just seeing everybody kind of run out of the dugout … it’s a really good feeling for sure.”
Lux hopeful Dodgers can build momentum
At 21-12, the Dodgers remain in first place of the National League West, but they narrowly avoided a four-game series sweep and have still dropped five of the last seven. The team’s pitching and defense have both regressed of late, but Lux is hopeful their walk-off win will help shift course.
“It’s just about putting it all together now, I think. Once we do that, it’s going to be really tough for teams to beat us,” he said. “I think the last five or six games have been frustrating for everybody, so to get a win here is good.”
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