Already due to be without Cody Bellinger as he recovers from being spiked in the left calf, the Los Angeles Dodgers also didn’t have Mookie Betts in the lineup because of lower back stiffness.
Chris Taylor filled the void in center field, playing for the first time since being hit by a pitch. He helped generate traffic, but too many opportunities were wasted and Kenley Jansen blew a save. The Dodgers fell 4-3 in 10 innings, giving the Oakland Athletics their first win.
They finished 5-2 on their road trip to begin the season and had a five-game winning streak snapped heading into the home opener on Friday.
True to their reputation, L.A. made A’s starter Jesús Luzardo labor and earn every out. He nearly got through a scoreless first inning after starting it with back-to-back walks of Taylor and Corey Seager, but AJ Pollock lined an RBI single up with the middle with two outs.
The Dodgers then left two on in the second inning before being retired in order in both the third and fourth. Despite fighting a high pitch count for most of the afternoon, Luzardo held the Dodgers to just one run and managed to get into the sixth inning.
By that point the A’s had tied the game by manufacturing a run against Trevor Bauer in the fourth. He hit Ramon Laureano, who then stole second base on a strikeout and later swiped third. Laureano’s jaunt around the bases then was completed when Bauer threw a wild pitch.
The Dodgers broke the tie in the sixth inning when Zach McKinstry dropped a bunt down the third-base line to beat the shift and score Max Muncy. However, it also marked the end of the inning as Austin Barnes came off the bag on his attempt to advance to third.
Justin Turner provided what wound up being the game-winning run on an RBI double in the top of the seventh. That additionally extended his on-base streak to 37 consecutive games, which is the longest active stretch in the Majors.
Bauer surrendered a leadoff home run to Matt Chapman in the seventh inning and exited with a runner on first base and two outs. Corey Knebel walked Sean Murphy before catching Mark Canha looking to escape the jam.
Jansen fought command issues as he allowed a leadoff single in the ninth and walked the next batter, which cost him as the A’s tied the game on a sacrifice fly. Taylor nearly ended it with a double play but his throw to the plate was dropped by Will Smith.
Mitch Moreland hit a walk-off single against Jimmy Nelson with one out in the 10th.
Bauer activates Dodgers promotion, adds to donation total
The Dodgers have a promotion that allows fans the opportunity to obtain a free jumbo jack (with purchase of a drink) the day after their pitchers collect 10 strikeouts. Bauer reached that total by himself, marking a second consecutive start doing so.
That also amounted to a second $10,000 donation to Think Together as part of his “Ks for a Cause” initiative in partnership with the Los Angeles Dodgers Foundation.
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