LOS ANGELES – There’s nothing like a three-run home run to cure what ails you.
Tyler Glasnow labored through six innings and the Dodgers’ offense slipped back into its dysfunctional funk after a two-run first inning. But Tommy Edman made all of that go away with a three-run home run in the seventh inning and the Dodgers held on for a 6-5 victory over the Washington Nationals on Saturday night.
The tone was set for Glasnow’s night when he retired the side in order in the first inning – on two warning-track flyouts totaling over 700 feet and a leaping catch by third baseman Kike’ Hernandez. It was not going to be easy.
Glasnow gave up five hits and walked two over the next three innings. Of his first 28 pitches, only 12 found the strike zone.
The Nationals scored once in the second inning but Glasnow stranded runners at second and third when he struck out Dylan Crews.
He stranded another runner in scoring position in the third inning but couldn’t avoid damage in the fourth when two-out hits by the bottom two hitters in the Nationals’ order (Keibert Ruiz and Crews) drove in two runs.
Glasnow seemed to find something after that and worked through the fifth and sixth without giving up another hit until Crews’ leadoff double in the seventh ended his night. Crews scored when Dodgers reliever Alex Vesia gave up another double to Lile.
The Dodgers’ offense had abandoned Glasnow to his struggles long before that.
Fittingly, on the first weekend of the college football season, an interception led to scoring for the Dodgers.
A hit batter and a single by Mookie Betts put two runners on with one out in the first. Kyle Tucker bounced a ground ball to first baseman Abimelec Ortiz that should have been either a 3-6-3 or a 3-6-1 double play to end the inning.
But the Nationals couldn’t decide. After getting the out at second base, Nationals starter Cade Cavalli took the return throw at first base, intercepting it in front of Ortiz, who had the base covered. Cavalli couldn’t make contact with the base and Tucker was safe with Freddie Freeman moving to third.
Teoscar Hernandez and Hunter Feduccia followed with two-out RBI singles – the precious commodity so lacking in the Dodgers’ offense recently.
But the offense dried up after that. Cavalli retired 16 of the next 17 Dodgers batters following Feduccia’s hit.
But the Nationals’ bullpen came into the game with an ERA over 5.00, higher than all but two teams (the A’s and Royals). Once Cavalli left the game after six innings, the Dodgers’ offense was revived. Alex Freeland drew a one-out walk in the seventh inning and Kike’ Hernandez singled with two outs. That brought up Edman, 0 for 7 since his four-hit game Thursday.
Nationals reliever Clayton Beeter fell behind 2-and-1 then rolled a hanging slider at the top of the strike zone. Edman hammered it into the right-field pavilion for the go-ahead runs.
The Nationals’ bullpen gifted the Dodgers another run in the eighth inning on a leadoff single by Betts, two walks and a bases-loaded hit by pitch.
That run became critical when Tanner Scott gave up three consecutive two-out hits in the ninth inning, turning it into the Dodgers’ 10th one-run game in their past 16 before he stranded the tying and go-ahead runs in scoring position by striking out C.J. Abrams to end the game.