Tommy Edman helped power the Dodgers (78-51) to a 5-4 walk-off victory over the Pittsburgh Pirates (63-67) Friday night at Dodger Stadium.
Yoshinobu Yamamoto pitched another gem, striking out nine over 6 2/3 innings. Kyle Hurt blew the lead in relief, but Edgardo Henriquez and Even Phillips preserved the tie long enough for the offense to come back for the extra-innings win and fourth straight win for the Boys in Blue.
The Pirates captured a 1-0 lead very quickly in the first against Yamamoto. Brandon Lowe singled just past Freddie Freeman at first base, and then Bryan Reynalds was hit by a Yamamoto cutter. Nick Gonzales jumped on a first-pitch splitter for a RBI single to center.
Max Muncy continues to clobber baseballs at Dodger Stadium. After all, he is the Dodger Stadium home run king. He took a Chandler high fastball for a ride, and the go-ahead home run gave the Dodgers a 2-1 lead in the bottom of the first.
Yamamoto struck out the side in the second utilizing his repertoire of pitches masterfully including his four-seam fastball, splitter, and sinker.
The Dodger fans roared in support for Kyle Tucker when he stepped into the batter’s box in the bottom of the second. The struggling outfielder went 0-for-4 with a walk on the night.
The Pirates tied it up in the third with two outs thanks to the same culprits who scored in the first. Lowe hit a ground-rule-double, and Gonzales brought him home with another RBI single.
The Dodgers opened the bottom of the third with back-to-back hits against Chandler from Hunter Feduccia and Shohei Ohtani. With runners at the corners, the Dodgers didn’t test the arm of Oneil Cruz on a Freeman liner.
Andy Pages got hit with a 100-mph pitch on his left hand to load the bases. He stayed in the game at first, but Kiké Hernández replaced Pages in center field in the fifth inning due to a left hand contusion.
Mookie Betts gave the Dodgers back the lead with a two-out two-RBI single to center.
The Pirates got their first base hit against Yamamoto since the third inning when Jake Mangum led off with a double in the seventh.
In the top of the 8th inning, the relief corps faltered once again, allowing the Pirates to strike back and tie the game at 4–4, officially wiping away Yamamoto’s chance at a well-deserved win.
The Pirates didn’t go down easy and continued to apply pressure to the Dodgers bullpen. Reynalds opened the eighth with a double against Hurt. Cruz evened the game with one swing of the bat. He crushed a four-seamer right down the middle for a two-run shot.
Mason Montgomery retired the Dodgers in order in the ninth including two strikeouts to send the game into extra innings.
Reynalds led off the 10th for Pittsburgh with a single against Phillips. Gonzales struck out after a battle of an at-bat. Cruz is intentionally walked to load the bases with one out for Henry Davis. Dave Roberts looked like a genius after David grounded into a double play to preserve the 4-4 tie.
Alex Call got the call to pinch-hit for Muncy and bunt over the ghost runner in the bottom of the 10th. This time Roberts’ strategy failed. Call struck out and failed to move the runner over. It was easily Call’s worst at-bat of the season.
Betts was intentionally walked by Gregory Soto, but Tucker chopped a force out thereafter.
Edman got the job done. He came up huge with a clutch walk-off hit to left field on a two-strike count to give the Dodgers the win.
Friday particulars
Home runs: Max Muncy (26); Oneil Cruz (16)
WP — Evan Phillips (1-2): 1 IP, 1 hits, no runs, 1 walk, 1 strikeouts (18 pitches)
LP — Gregory Soto (5-4): 2/3 IP, 1 hit, 1 run, 1 walk, 1 strikeout (14 pitches)
Up next
The Dodgers and Pirates continue the series on Saturday (4:15 p.m. PT, FOX). Tarik Skubal (7-7, 2.85 ERA, 0.96 WHIP) takes the ball for the Dodgers. Jared Jones (2-5, 4.78 ERA, 1.20 WHIP) starts for the Bucs.
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