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Dodgers keep streak going, score 5 again to beat Giants

The Dodgers have now scored at least five runs in each of their first eight games this season. Mookie Betts scored two Tuesday, including his fifth home run of the season, in a 5-4 win.

The Dodgers’ Mookie Betts, left, celebrates his home run with Freddie Freeman during the third inning of their game against the San Francisco Giants on Tuesday night at Dodger Stadium. Betts homered and scored twice in a 5-4 win. (AP Photo/Ryan Sun)
By | bplunkett@scng.com | Orange County Register
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LOS ANGELES — The ceiling for this Dodgers lineup is still unknown. But they seem to have established a floor at five runs.

The Dodgers have scored at least five times in each of their first eight games this season. That was just enough to beat the San Francisco Giants, 5-4, Tuesday night.

This is the first time the Dodgers have started a season with at least five runs in each of their first eight games since they joined the National League in 1890. Only nine other teams since 1900 have scored five or more runs in each of their first eight games (or more), according to MLB statistician Sarah Langs.

“I guess so – for right now,” shortstop Mookie Betts said when asked if this streak was a sign of the lineup’s capabilities. “It’s a long season. Just got to continue to work hard, have good at-bats, play the whole game, put pressure on them and see what happens.”

Betts has done much of that scoring himself during an MVP-level start to his season.

Betts was 2 for 5 with his fifth home run of the season and scored two of the Dodgers’ runs Tuesday night.

He reached base on a single in the first inning, stole second and scored on an RBI single by Freddie Freeman. It was the fourth time in eight games Betts has scored in the first inning – the Dodgers have won all four of those games.

In his next at-bat, Betts lifted a 3-and-1 changeup from Giants ace Logan Webb into the left field pavilion for a solo home run – and the 1,500th hit of his career.

“I had no idea,” Betts said of reaching the milestone. “Freddie came and congratulated me, and I was like, ‘For what?’”

Betts has already scored 14 runs this season. The New York Mets, Chicago White Sox and Minnesota Twins have not. And Betts’ five home runs are more than 10 teams have managed to hit this season.

“Oh, man – it’s special,” second baseman Gavin Lux said of Betts’ start. “Every time he comes in I feel like I just tell him, ‘You’re the goat, man.’ I feel like you can’t get him out and if you do get him out it’s a hard-hit ball or he’s taking his walks. Really impressive. And playing really good shortstop, something he hasn’t done in a long time. I don’t think it’s surprised anybody. But what he’s doing – you just get on the top step and watch what he’s doing.”

Betts’ home run tied the score at 2-2 after left-hander Ryan Yarbrough got off to a rough start in his non-start.

Once through the rotation on this homestand, Dodgers’ starters gave up four runs in 27 innings. But they opted for a bullpen game Tuesday in order to keep those starters on at least five days of rest.

“Any time you’re facing Webb, it doesn’t matter who you run out there, it’s gonna be tough. We didn’t have a lot of margin tonight,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said. “So you have to sort of let guys run a little bit longer. It gets a little uncomfortable, for sure. You’re trying to hold as long as you can to deploy guys. You don’t want to use certain leverage guys in a minus game or end up losing that game. So you kind of sit tight a little bit more than you should and it is a good feeling when you can win a game like that.”

The Dodgers got a scoreless first inning from Ryan Brasier before sending Yarbrough out in the ‘bulk’ role.

The first batter he faced, Wilmer Flores, doubled and eventually scored on a two-out single by Nick Ahmed. In the third inning, Yarbrough gave up another leadoff double (to Matt Chapman) and another run.

The Dodgers took the lead with a three-run burst from the bottom half of their lineup in the fourth inning. Max Muncy led off with a double. Teoscar Hernandez drew a walk. Two batters later, Gavin Lux doubled in one run and Kiké Hernandez drove in two with a single.

That lead nearly melted away in the sixth inning.

Yarbrough ran into trouble again, giving up a leadoff home run to Jorge Soler and singles to Michael Conforto and Flores. A run scored on a force out, making it a one-run game. Alex Vesia came in and gave up a long fly out to Austin Slater before escaping further damage.

Michael Grove and Evan Phillips combined to protect that one-run lead over the final three innings with Phillips getting a four-out save.

“It’s a little bit different because the writing is on the wall,” Phillips said of the atmosphere among the relievers when they know it’s a bullpen game. “We’re losing guys one by one as they go out there. We had a couple guys down today that weren’t available. As the game is progressing, you kind of piece together how it might come.

“We’re used to bullpen games, we’ve done plenty of them before and I think we take a lot of pride in trying to put a little more emphasis on winning that game when it’s our job to go out there and take care of it.”

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