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Julio Urías shut down San Francisco and contributed an RBI single for his cause, Cody Bellinger and AJ Pollock delivered two-run doubles to open it in the sixth, and the Los Angeles Dodgers beat the Giants 9-2 Saturday night to tie their NL Division Series at one game each.
Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said earlier today: “We’re going to play this game basically as a do or die,” and the defending World Series champions have done just that by continuing to add, including the first Will Smith’s circuit in the eighth.
Now NL West runner-up Los Angeles – second place despite 106 wins – is back and heading home to Chavez Ravine with a chance to gain momentum.
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The best of five series travel to Dodger Stadium for Game 3 on Monday night, which is hardly surprising considering how close these clubs are for months. The Giants, who had 107 wins, beat the Dodgers for the division on the final day and won the season series 10-9, but were outscored 80-78 overall.
“It’s great to win one on the road,” said Dodgers star Mookie Betts. “Julio threw a great game. Any kind of atmosphere like this, he’ll be ready to throw.”
Urías hit an RBI single in the second to give Los Angeles the lead, and Betts followed with a scoring single.
And these “Let’s go, giants!” the chants were suddenly competing with the “Let’s go, Dodgers!” Los Angeles worshipers on fire. in a noisy crowd, largely orange, of 42,275 sold-out people.
San Francisco responded immediately in the lower half when Urías took out Wilmer Flores in the lead and gave up Brandon Crawford’s single. Flores advanced on Evan Longoria’s deep flyball to cross and scored on a sacrificial volley from Donovan Solano.
Urías seemed barely moved.
Ahead of his debut, the 25-year-old southpaw stressed how facing these Giants would require immense focus – and the 20-game winner certainly watched the first pitch game as he beat Giants All-Star right-hander Kevin Gausman.
Urías has gone undefeated in his last 17 regular season starts since June 21, going 11-0 in that streak that included a September 4 victory here at rowdy Oracle Park. He struck out five and walked one in five innings on Saturday, allowing one run on three hits.
Gausman, furiously chewing his gum, had a tough act to follow after a gem from Logan Webb in his playoff debut a night earlier, when the right-hander and a pair of relievers kept the Dodgers down to five hits. in a 4-0 victory.
Trea Turner doubled up leading the sixth, and after Justin Turner struck out, Smith walked to chase Gausman after 5 1/3 innings in which he put out seven strikes and three steps.
Trea Turner also contributed two stellar defensive plays in second, while Betts thwarted a Giants rally potential in the sixth with a perfect right field pitch to catch Wilmer Flores in third.
“Sometimes you just do things you can’t really explain,” Betts said. “And that was just one of them.”
Buster Posey’s sixth inning single gave him 54 playoff hits, most in Giants’ playoff history. He had three hits in the game.
“I’m obviously looking forward to turning the page on tonight’s game and getting ready for Los Angeles,” Giants manager Gabe Kapler said. “It wasn’t our best effort tonight. The Dodgers just swinging the sticks better than us, throwing more shots than us, making more plays than us.
“So like we’ve been doing throughout the season, we’re going to turn the page and get ready for a day off, a day off from preparation and getting ready for Game 3.”
RANGE SWITCH
Roberts went with Bellinger to first base – he’s played four games there this year and 19 in 2020 – in order to get Chris Taylor’s bat in the lineup. Taylor hit the deciding two-run homer in the ninth inning of Wednesday’s 3-1 win over the Cardinals.
Taylor doubled his first at bat with an out in the second and finished 2 for 4 with a walk.
Bellinger has been there as well.
The 2019 National League MVP fell to an average of .165 in the regular season and was 0 of 5 with four strikeouts in the series before turning it into a rout with his sixth double.
Prior to that, there had been 75,528 occasions where a player had beaten more than 50 times against a team in a season – the playoffs included – since 1903, and Bellinger’s (2 of 53) average of 0.038 against the Giants was the lowest of all these players. , according to SportRadar.
TRAINERS ‘ROOM
Dodgers: Los Angeles is hoping 1G Max Muncy will be back in action if the Dodgers advance. The slugger dislocated his left elbow in Sunday’s regular series final after colliding with Milwaukee’s Jace Peterson early on. Muncy, who hit .250 with 36 home runs, shouldn’t need surgery.
Giants: 1B Brandon Belt had his broken left thumb reassessed by hand specialist Dr. Scott Hansen. Belt and the Giants hope he heals in time for a return to the NLCS if the Giants advance.
FOLLOWING
Giants left-hander Alex Wood will start Game 3. San Francisco was 12-2 with Wood on the mound following a regular season loss. Roberts hadn’t announced his plans either, but ace Max Scherzer believed he was in contention for the start.
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