The game reversed in an instant, two hours and 24 minutes of emptiness erased with one swing. Yasmani Grandal pumped his fist before he even touched first base, moments after his go-ahead, three-run homer in the eighth inning disappeared over the centre-field fence. A mob of giddy Los Angeles Dodgers greeted him in the dugout, eager to celebrate their only offense in a 3-2 victory over the Washington Nationals.
Winners of five in a row for the first time in 2016, the Dodgers (40-33) can take joy in capturing a series over Washington, the leaders of the National League East. The Dodgers can conjure a sweep in Wednesday’s series finale.
That outcome appeared remote when the eighth inning began. Silent for seven innings against Nationals starter Tanner Roark, the team stoked a rally in brisk fashion. Joc Pederson walked. Yasiel Puig laced a single off the glove of shortstop Danny Espinosa. It was Puig’s first hit in his first game back after two weeks on the disabled list.
To the plate came Grandal. His batting average hovered at.178, the product of a wretched May. He had yet to elevate a ball against Roark. That would soon change.
Down two strikes, Grandal still destroyed a fastball at the thighs. It was his sixth home run of the season. Kenley Jansen slammed shut the door in the ninth for his 21st save of the season.
Scott Kazmir survived a series of rockets off Washington bats to last six innings. He dodged most of the lasers, but did allow a pair of solo home runs.
In the afternoon, the conversation was dominated by Puig, whose return forces daily decisions for manager Dave Roberts. Roberts intends to use Puig as his regular right fielder, even though Puig hit .237 with scant patience before landing on the disabled list.
With Puig in right and Howie Kendrick in left, Trayce Thompson sat on the bench for the first time all month. Along with Corey Seager and Joc Pederson, Thompson aided a youth movement that powered the offense earlier in the season. But opposing pitchers have scaled back Thompson’s fastball consumption and fooled him with offspeed pitches. During the past 11 games heading into Tuesday, Thompson hit .195 with a .559 on-base plus slugging percentage. He struck out 12 times and walked only four.
“The last week, he’s cooled off,” Roberts said. “I think he needs a break, as anyone does.”
Roberts must juggle at-bats between Puig, Thompson and Kendrick, while still searching for time for reserves such as Scott Van Slyke and Enrique Hernandez. The team hopes by juggling the lineup the group will maintain its stamina through the long season. Given this arrangement, Roberts conceded, Puig must perform in order to retain his status.
“For me, I want... consistent, quality at-bats from him, regardless of the results,” Roberts said before the game. “Because I believe that if he’s putting together good at-bats and squaring the baseball up, he’ll get hits and drive runs in.”
The second inning presented Puig with an opportunity to do both. He stepped to the plate with two outs and Pederson at second base after a double. Puig spit on a pair of sliders from Washington starter Tanner Roark to run the count full. Roark threw a belt-high fastball. Puig grounded out.
The lineup did not provide much support for Kazmir. He allowed a solo home run to Nationals slugger Bryce Harper in the first inning. Harper turned around a 92-mph fastball to put the Dodgers behind.
The hole deepened in the fifth. Kazmir let a changeup float to the top of the strike zone against shortstop Danny Espinosa. Kazmir smacked his glove against his leg after Espinosa’s drive cleared the fence in left field.
Kazmir looked on the verge of folding as the inning continued. After Espinosa took him deep, Kazmir yielded a double to Roark. A reprieve came when Chase Utley capitalized on Roark’s lack of foot speed and threw him out on a subsequent groundball.
The play by Utley proved crucial, because Nationals outfielder Jayson Werth followed up with a single. Harper advanced both runners with a grounder. The Dodgers intentionally walked cleanup hitter Daniel Murphy. Kazmir left the bases loaded by striking out first baseman Ryan Zimmerman with a changeup at the shins.
In the bottom of the inning, Pederson smacked a one-out single. A rally never materialized. Roark fired a 93-mph fastball over the middle, but the late movement stifled Puig’s power. He rolled into a double play to end the frame. His third at-bat would prove far more fruitful.
RESULTS
Colorado 8 NY Yankees 4
San Diego 10 Baltimore 7
San Francisco 15 Pittsburgh 4
Arizona 4 Toronto 2
Detroit 4 Seattle 2
Atlanta 3 Miami 2 (10 innings)
Chicago White Sox 3 Boston 1
NY Mets 2 Kansas City 1
Cleveland 6 Tampa Bay 0
Cincinnati 8 Texas 2
St. Louis 4 Chicago Cubs 3
Houston 3 LA Angels 2
Minnesota 14 Philadelphia 10
Oakland 5 Milwaukee 3
LA Dodgers 3 Washington 2