Dodgers secure NL West with win over Orioles

Here we are again. The Dodgers won the NL West.

Now that we have all the excitement out of our system, let’s talk about what went down during the division-clinching game.

The Dodgers looked fully focused to clinch on Tuesday night in Baltimore, leading by as many as seven runs in the contest. The bullpen ultimately gave up a few runs late in the game to finish off with a 7-3 final score.

The scoring started early, with the first run coming with only one out in the game. David Freese drew a walk against Orioles pitcher Ty Blach and Chris Taylor and Cody Bellinger immediately followed with a pair of base hits to bring home Freese. Then, Corey Seager found the power within him and hit a home run to bring in a total of three runs, making the score 4-0.

Gavin Lux struck out to end the inning with Will Smith and Joc Pederson both in scoring position, but he made up for it later in the game. In the fifth inning, Lux hit his first major league home run. It came against Orioles lefty pitcher Tanner Scott on the second pitch of the at-bat.

All the while, Corey Seager hit his second home run of the night and Walker Buehler was straight dealing.

Walker Buehler was coming in after making a not-so-great start against the Rockies at home, but proved to still be the elite pitcher we all know he is.

The 25-year-old starter shined against the Orioles lineup, limiting them to four hits, no walks and no runs. He made four 1-2-3 innings in this start and dished out an amazing 11 strikeouts. His (yet another) stellar strikeout performance puts him at team-high 201 strikeouts this season.

Buehler exited with a 7-0 lead after seven amazing innings and handed the game off to right-handed reliever Casey Sadler. Sadler, one of the more reliable pieces in the pen, gave up the shutout, allowing three runs to score from three hits and a walk. The first run came in the first at-bat against 8-hitter DJ Stewart, who hit a homer. He walked the next batter and after a pair of base hits, the Dodgers lead was cut to four runs.

Caleb Ferguson came in to finish off the game, pitching a 1-2-3 ninth inning to bring the Dodgers to their seventh-straight NL West win.

If you were expecting a full-on field celebration, you’d be disappointed. What a difference from the Chase Field pool party back in 2013.

They did, of course, celebrate in the clubhouse.

Tuesday particulars

WP: Walker Buehler (13-3), 7.0 IP, 4 H, 0 BB, 0 R, 11 K

LP: Ty Blach (1-3), 2 ¹⁄₃ IP, 9 H, 6 ER, 1 BB, 3 K, 2 HR

Home runs: Corey Seager 2 (16), Gavin Lux (1), DJ Stewart (1)

Box score

Up next

The NL West winners will look to keep up their momentum in another game against the Orioles. Game two is scheduled to start at 4:05 p.m. PT.