Mike Salas
Game 149, 9/15/2024: Dodgers 9, Braves 2
ATLANTA, GA — The Dodgers aimed to get back into the win column on Roberto Clemente Day, and Walker Buehler’s performance against the Atlanta Braves on Sunday was a promising start, despite command issues in the third inning. But the real fireworks came late in this one, as the Dodgers hung a seven-spot on the Atlanta bullpen to win going away 9-2 in a definite must-win game.
The Braves were the first to score, thanks to a catcher’s interference call on Austin Barnes and three walks issued by Buehler in the bottom of the third inning. Atlanta added a second run when Gavin Lux couldn’t get the ball out of his glove in time to make a play at second base. It was a hard luck way to give up runs, and it looked like Buehler might be on the way to another rough start. However, Walker righted the ship after that, and gave his offense a chance to get back in the game.
The Dodgers finally got on the board in the fifth with a Shohei Ohtani line-drive double down the right-field line, scoring Max Muncy and moving Gavin Lux to third base. Mookie Betts then came up with runners in scoring position but popped out to left field, ending the inning.
Walker Buehler’s night ended after six innings. He started strong but ran into command issues in the third inning. However, he settled down in the fourth and pitched solidly through the sixth inning before being replaced by Blake Treinen in the bottom of the seventh. Buehler’s final line: 97 pitches / 63 strikes / 6 IP / 3 H / 2 R / 1 ER / 5 BB / 5 K. And, best news of all, ZERO home runs.
In the bottom of the fourth, Will Smith replaced Austin Barnes, who left the game with a left toe contusion. Dave Roberts made additional substitutions in the sixth inning, with Kiké Hernández replacing Gavin Lux at second base and Andy Pages taking over for Kevin Kiermaier in center field.
Ohtani struck again in the top of the seventh inning. After being down 0-2 in the count, he hit another RBI double into right field, scoring Will Smith and moving Andy Pages to third, tying the game at 2-2. Once again, Mookie Betts came up with runners in scoring position but flied out to center field, ending the inning. It seemed for the moment that it might not be Mookie’s night. But there was still plenty of baseball left in this one.
Michael Kopech entered the game in the bottom of the eighth inning, replacing Treinen. He walked the first batter and then gave up a double to Braves’ Matt Olson, putting runners in scoring position with no outs. Kopech buckled down, retiring the next three batters (striking out two) to keep the game tied at 2-2.
In the top of the ninth, Will Smith crushed a ball to right field for a triple. The Braves intentionally walked Ohtani, bringing Mookie Betts to the plate. For Betts, the third time was the charm. After coming up short the first two at-bats with runners in scoring position, Mookie wasn’t going to squander a third bite at the apple. Betts ripped a line drive to left center, scoring Smith and putting the Dodgers up 3-2. Freddie Freeman followed with a double, scoring Ohtani and Betts, extending the Dodgers’ lead to 5-2.
The Dodgers broke the game open when Teoscar Hernández blasted a two-run home run, scoring Freeman and making it 7-2. Tommy Edman and Max Muncy added solo home runs to right-center field, pushing the lead to 9-2 by the end of the top of the ninth. It. Was. Awesome.
Dodgers showed some pride tonight and broke the game open in the nineth inning scoring seven runs. Monday’s game can be seen on SportsNet LA at1:20 in the afternoon. Dodgers Yoshinobu Yamamoto takes the mound tomorrow and will pitch against Atlanta’s Max Fried. Dodgers hope to leave Atlanta tomorrow with a four-game series split before traveling to Florida to take on the Marlins.
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