Cody Bellinger’s big blast lifts the Dodgers over the Twins

Cody Bellinger carried his bat all the way down the first base line after he connected with an 0-2 pitch. That signature move could only mean that Bellinger hammered the ball out to dead center for a three-run homer to lift the Dodgers to a 6-4 win over the Twins.

Bellinger’s 28th home run of the season provided the Dodgers with their 34th win in the last 40 games.

The win was a special one for Edward Paredes who turns 31 in September. Paredes pitched a perfect eighth inning in his major league debut to earn his first victory after nine years in the minor leagues.

Hyun-jin Ryu lasted five innings in his first start since June 28 but had a hard time finishing off batters when he got to two strikes. The Twins took advantage with two outs in the fourth with two walks that sandwiched an Eddie Rosario RBI-double.

Minnesota took a 2-0 lead in the inning when Jason Castro clubbed a double down the left field line. The inning might have continued if not for the relay to the plate to get Robbie Grossman to end the inning.

It was uphill battle all night for the Dodgers in what would end up being a back-and-forth affair. 44-year-old Bartolo Colon was stingy in the early going, holding the Dodgers scoreless through four innings.

The Dodgers finally broke through in the fifth when Yasmani Grandal and Joc Pederson homered back-to-back off Bartolo Colon. Yasiel Puig followed with a triple and would later score on a Chris Taylor single.

Rosario would continue his assault on Dodger pitching to get the Twins back in the lead with a solo homer in the sixth and another RBI-double — misplayed by Taylor — in the seventh.

After the Dodgers took the lead, Jansen locked it down in the ninth for win number 69 in game 100 for the year.

Up next

The Twins will send Jose Berrios (9-3, 3.50) to the mound to square off with Kenta Maeda (8-4, 4.23).

Monday particulars

Home runs: Yasmani Grandal (14), Joc Pederson (10), Cody Bellinger (28), Eddie Rosario (11)

WP - Edward Paredes (1-0): 1 IP

LP - Taylor Rogers (5-2): 1 IP, 3 hits, 3 runs, 3 strikeouts

SV - Kenley Jansen (25): 1 IP, 1 walk, 1 strikeout