Dodgers Take Series From Diamondbacks

Jul 1, 2015; Phoenix, AZ, USA; Los Angeles Dodgers shortstop Enrique Hernandez (14) scores as Arizona Diamondbacks catcher Jarrod Saltalamacchia (8) waits for the ball and Umpire Mike Muchlinski looks on in the first inning at Chase Field. Mandatory Credit: Matt Kartozian-USA TODAY Sports

In a well-fought series between the Los Angeles Dodgers (45-35) and the Arizona Diamondbacks (37-41) over the last three days, the Dodgers came out on top, edging the D-backs 4-3 in the finale Wednesday to take the series two-games-to-three.

Despite losing two games in a row, the D-backs competed the entire time. They smacked the Dodgers on Monday night, putting 10 runs on the board to take the first game of the series.

Tuesday night’s crowd was treated to “free baseball” as the Dodgers and D-backs were tied after 9 innings. But the Dodgers went to work right away and put a 3-spot on the board in the top of the 10th inning to break the 3-3 tie. The D-backs attempted to make a comeback in the bottom of the 10th, but came up two runs short and dropped the game 6-4.

On Wednesday, the Dodgers looked like they had this thing in the bag, but the D-backs didn’t go down without a fight.

Down 4-0 going into the later innings, the D-backs slowly chipped away at the LA lead. They put up a run in the 6th, 8th and 9th innings, but again came up short and Los Angeles escaped with a 4-3 victory.

The D-backs fall to 3-9 against the Dodgers this season in the 12 games they have faced.

Here’s a look at the series game-by-game:

Monday:

Dodgers 6, D-backs 10 

Fans at Chase Field couldn’t tell if they were watching a ballgame or the Home Run Derby.

Los Angeles jumped to a 4-0 lead after 4 innings courtesy of three solo jacks by Andre Either, Yasmani Grandal and Joc Pederson all in the same inning.

Then in the bottom of the 5th, Nick Ahmed got Arizona on the board with a two-run shot to center field.

The following inning, Yasmany Tomas, who has been red-hot as of late, homered with Paul Goldschmidt aboard to tie things up at four.

Each team would match each other for two more runs in the 7th to tie it up again at 6 apiece.

But the D-backs would get a few clutch hits in the bottom of the 8th inning to tack on four additional runs and take a 10-6 lead going into the 9th inning.

The Dodgers were silent and the D-backs held on to beat Los Angeles for only the third time this season.

D-backs starter Allen Webster did not factor into the decision as he lasted only 3 2/3 innings and gave up four runs on five hits.

The win went to reliever Enrique Burgos who picked up his first “W” of the season.

The loss went to Dodger reliever Pedro Baez who gave up the four go-ahead runs to the D-backs.

 Tuesday:

Dodgers 6, D-backs 4 / 10 innings 

This one required an additional inning of play to break a 3-3 tie after the first 9 innings.

Things got started in the 2nd inning when Grandal hit his second homer of the series to give LA a 2-0 lead.  The D-backs got a run back in the bottom of the second.

With the score 2-1 LA in the bottom of the 4th, Ahmed homered for the second night in a row to give Arizona a 3-2 lead.

But the lead wouldn’t last. Second-baseman Howie Kendrick picked up an RBI single in the 7th to tied it up at three.

And that’s were things stayed until the 10th inning.

Remember that guy Kendrick? Well he was at it again three innings later.

In the 10th, Kendrick hit a line drive home run off of David Hernandez to give the Dodgers a 4-3 advantage.

A few batters later, Grandal made some noise with a two-RBI double to make it 6-3. The Dodgers were sitting pretty high and mighty after that.

The D-backs didn’t just roll over and die though. Goldschmidt doubled in the bottom of the 10th to score David Peralta and make it a 6-4 game. But the D-backs failed to get any closer and the Dodgers took game two of the series.

Dodger reliever Joel Peralta picked up his second win of the season after pitching in the 9th. The loss went to David Hernandez who gave up the three Dodger runs in extra innings.

Wednesday:

Dodgers 4, D-backs 3 

The Dodgers were all business as they jumped to a 4-0 lead after the first three innings, scoring each time off of D-backs starter Robbie Ray, who gave up four runs on seven hits in his six innings of work.

The D-backs did their best to get back in the game. The long-ball would be their ally as Aaron Hill homered in the 6th to get Arizona on the board.

The D-backs manufactured a run in the bottom of the 8th to cut the LA lead in half, 4-2.

Then in the bottom of the 9th inning, Peralta homered off of Kenley Jansen to make it 4-3. But the D-backs again came up short and dropped the game by a run.

Ray was handed the loss while the win went to Dodgers’ starter Brett Anderson.

Despite the outcome, Arizona played good baseball. They were able to compete with the NL West leaders and only dropped one game in the standings.

The Dodgers now lead the D-backs by seven games in the division race.

Up next, the Colorado Rockies come into town to face the D-backs in a four-game weekend series beginning on Thursday night.

The Dodgers, meanwhile, will enjoy an off-day Thursday as they return to Dodger Stadium to host the New York Mets.