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Los Angeles Dodgers’ Trea Turner reacts as he leads the bases after hitting a grand slam home run in the fifth inning of a baseball game against the Milwaukee Brewers on Friday, September 1, 2021, in Los Angeles. Austin Barnes, Albert Pujols and Mookie Betts also scored. (AP Photo / Ashley Landis)
LOS ANGELES (AP) – The Dodgers still have something to play for, although they perhaps do without Clayton Kershaw.
The three-time Cy Young Award winner suffered an injury before Trea Turner hit a grand slam and solo home run as Los Angeles extended the NL West race for at least another day, passing the Milwaukee Brewers 8-6 on Friday evening.
Pinch hitter Matt Beaty threw a decisive homerun in the seventh inning to help the defending World Series champions maintain their increasingly slim bid for a ninth straight division title with their 104th win.
The first-place San Francisco Giants beat Arizona 3-0 to win at least a tie for the title and reduced their magic number to one. The Giants lead Los Angeles by two games.
“At this point, I just guess they are winning and we are winning a lot” Turner said.
The Dodgers trailed the Brewers, NL Central champions 5-1 after three innings, but returned to win their 13th in a row at home, tying the 13th in a row they won at home to open the season 2009. It was their fifth consecutive victory in the general classification.
However, it wasn’t all good news for the Dodgers in the playoffs.
A dark Kershaw left his start with discomfort to his left forearm in the second inning after 42 pitches. It was the same injury that kept him on the injured list from July 4 to September 12.
“It’s a hard blow” he said. “I just felt something in my elbow, I don’t know what it is. It’s kind of the same thing I had to deal with. It got bad enough that I couldn’t continue.
Kershaw allowed three runs and two hits in 1 2/3 of his last regular season start. The left-hander pulled one out and didn’t walk. He’s 10-8 with a 3.38 ERA, his highest score since a 4.26 ERA as a rookie in 2008.
“There is a good chance that October is not shaping up well at the moment”, he said. “I know we are going to do something special this year and I wanted to be a part of it.”
Blake Treinen (6-5) got the victory in relief, allowing a hit. Kenley Jansen had four strikeouts to earn his 38th save, the eighth pitcher used by the Dodgers.
Beaty went far against Jandel Gustave for a 6-5 lead. It was the Dodgers’ 14th homer in the last three games.
The Dodgers added two more points in the seventh. Gustave (1-2) hit Mookie Betts and Corey Seager hit. They moved across Gustavus’ wild terrain, and Turner was intentionally stepped on to charge the bases.
Betts scored on Gustave’s wild second pitch that brought Turner up and Seager, who scored on the Max Muncy single that made it 8-5.
Turner’s fourth career grand slam was won by Eric Lauer and tied him at 5 in the fifth. Austin Barnes, pinch hitter Albert Pujols and Betts chose to charge the bases. Turner hit his 27th home run – ninth with the Dodgers – down center with two strikeouts.
Turner’s solo shot in the first landed in the lower right-field seats with two strikeouts, extending his career-high 17-game hitting streak. His five RBIs were a season high.
“Trea got me a bit. He took some good shots ”, Lauer said. “The first one was exactly where I wanted to throw it and it got there. The change was obviously the worst throw I have ever thrown.
Twice-scoring Eduardo Escobar, Kolten Wong and Luis Urias each had two hits for Milwaukee.
Lauer allowed five runs and six hits in five innings. The southpaw struck out three at bat and walked two.
THE FUTURE
The Dodgers named infielder Miguel Vargas and Hyun-il Choi as Branch Rickey minor league player and pitcher of the year. Vargas has reached 0.319, with 23 homers and 76 RBIs in 120 games split between Advanced-A Great Lakes and Double-A Tulsa. The 21-year-old Cuban was not invited to spring training this season, appearing in eight games and scoring two points in nine plate appearances. Choi of South Korea was 8-6 with a 3.55 ERA and 106 strikeouts in 24 games of his first full season in the minor leagues. Vargas and Choi were honored in a pre-game ceremony.
TRAINERS ‘ROOM
Brewers: RHP Hunter Strickland was reinstated from the paternity list and started the eighth. … RHP Miguel Sánchez has been chosen for Triple-A Nashville.
FOLLOWING
Brewers: RHP Corbin Burnes (11-4, 2.29 ERA) is 9-0 with a 2.28 ERA in his last 19 starts.
Dodgers: LHP Julio Urías (19-3, 3.02) is looking to become the majors’ first 20-game winner this season and his team’s first since Kershaw won 21 in 2014.
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