Dodgers lose on walk-off home run

For 8 ²⁄₃ innings, the Rockies were held scoreless.

The beauty of baseball is that you play until the final out. For the Dodgers, that beauty quickly turned into something that will stick with them for a while.

For the second consecutive night, Ryan McMahon hit a home run that would give the Rockies the win. This time, coming with two outs in the ninth inning.

With runners on first and third and two outs, McMahon stepped up to the plate. On a 1-0 pitch, he connected on a 95-mph fastball, barely clearing the wall in right-field, giving the Rockies a 3-2 win.

With Arizona’s loss to the Reds, LA had a chance to take sole possession of first.

For the third consecutive night, the Dodgers got on the board first. Manny Machado hit his 26th double of the season, and then came in to score on a Justin Turner triple. For Turner, it was his eighth career triple, and first in nearly two years.

The lead was doubled in the second inning as Yasiel Puig connected on an 87-mph slider, sending it deep into the left-field stands.

For Puig, this was his 100th career home run. Puig becomes the 18th Dodger to reach the 100 home run club.

For the Dodgers, the two runs were all they were able to scrap against Kyle Freeland. The left-hander held LA in check. In seven innings, he struck out 10 and allowed only six hits.

Walker Buehler, who earlier in the season threw six no-hit innings, gave us arguably the best start of his young career.

For the 24-year-old, it was his fourth start of the year going at least seven innings. He became the first visiting pitcher to throw at least six scoreless innings at Coors Field this season.

Throughout the night, the rookie found himself in tight spots, which at Coors Field, could be detrimental. Luckily for Buehler, he was able to work around it and escape unharmed.

The Rockies threatened in the first, putting two on with one out. The right-hander responded by inducing back-to-back outs.

Alongside his great pitching, Buehler was backed up by some amazing defense as well.

The Rockies threatened again in the fourth inning, putting two on with one out. This time, they would hit into a double-play to end the inning, but not a usual way. Ian Desmond flied out to Puig, who then gunned the ball back to first, doubling up Gerardo Parra.

As the sixth inning rolled around, it appeared as if the Rockies were finally ready to break through. They had two runners on, and Trevor Story coming up to the plate. Coming into the evening, Story was fifth in the N.L. with 80 runs batted in. His total would stay at 80, as he grounded into a double play, allowing Buehler to escape yet another jam.

Parra would leadoff the seventh inning for Colorado, but a force out and two strikeouts from Buehler would cap off his stellar night.

For the evening, Buehler struck out six and allowed four hits. He become the third Dodgers pitcher to throw at least seven scoreless innings while striking out six batters in Coors Field history, joining Clayton Kershaw and Hideo Nomo.

Caleb Ferguson pitched a 1-2-3 eighth inning. As a reliever, Ferguson owns a 1.14 ERA.

With the closer situation still up in the air, the Dodgers experimented with Scott Alexander first. He struck out his first batter, but then allowed a double to Trevor Story.

JT Chargois entered the game. He promptly hit Nolan Arenado with a pitch, putting two on with one out. Desmond then grounded out on yet another spectacular play from Dozier.

With runners on the corners and two outs, McMahon stepped up to the plate.

The entire game, the Dodgers were able to escape jams. It appeared the clock struck midnight, and their luck came to a screeching halt. McMahon hit his fourth homer of the year.

Up Next

The Dodgers look to even the series, as they’ll send Rich Hill (5-4, 3.62 ERA) to the mound to face off versus Chad Bettis (5-2, 5.67 ERA)

Saturday’s particulars

Home Runs: Yasiel Puig (15), Ryan McMahon (4)

WP: Bryan Shaw (4-5) 1 IP, 1 BB

LP: JT Chargois (2-4) 0.1 IP, 2 ER