The Los Angeles Dodgers bounced back from a loss by snapping the Baltimore Orioles’ season-best eight-game winning streak behind a go-ahead grand slam by Chris Taylor that lifted them to a 6-4 comeback victory.
The Dodgers trailed when the sixth inning began and were on the verge of scoring just one run on Will Smith’s base hit. However, Jason Heyward kept the inning alive by battling back from an 0-2 count to draw a walk that loaded the bases.
Taylor also fell into an 0-2 count, but fouled off two consecutive fastballs from Bryan Baker before connecting on a third heater for his second grand slam of the season.
Taylor’s blast gave the Dodgers nine grand slams this year, which tied with the 2000 team for third-most in franchise history. The 2004 Dodgers hit 10 grand slams and the record belongs to the 2021 club that hit 11 in one season.
Of the Dodgers’ grand slams this year, nine have come in the sixth inning or later, and five have tied the game or given L.A. a lead.
Taylor was in position to provide a game-winning swing for the Dodgers thanks in part to Emmet Sheehan settling in after a bumpy start to his night. The Orioles led 3-0 through two innings as Sheehan didn’t retire the side in order until the third.
That wound up propelling him to a stretch of retiring nine batters in a row before Adley Rutschman’s solo home run with one out in the bottom of the fifth. Sheehan completing five innings provided the Dodgers with some length along with keeping them in the game.
Offensively, L.A. began to chip away at their deficit on J.D. Martinez’s RBI single in the fourth inning. Martinez entered the series with a .709 slugging percentage in his career against the Orioles, which is the best all-time by any player since 1954 (minimum 250 plate appearances).
Freddie Freeman went 3-for-5, finishing a home run shy of hitting for the cycle. Freeman additionally extended his on-base streak to 18 games, breaking a tie with Milwaukee Brewers teammates Willy Adames and William Contreras for longest active stretch in the Majors.
Dodgers bullpen shines
After Yency Almonte and Alex Vesia both faced the minimum in their respective one inning of work, Caleb Ferguson stranded a base hit in the eighth and Ryan Brasier converted his first save with the Dodgers.
Brusdar Graterol and Evan Phillips were both unavailable due to pitching the last two days. Vesia’s appearance was his third in a row.
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!
