The Los Angeles Dodgers continued to show their dominance of the NL West with an 11-2 win against the Padres on Sunday in San Diego, securing a 2-1 series win and clinching a playoff berth in the National League.
With the victory, the Dodgers took one step closer to yet another NL West division title.
Lefty starter Andrew Heaney threw five full innings and picked up the win for Los Angeles, allowing two runs — one earned — on three hits and two walks while striking out six San Diego batters.
The Dodgers had five players with multi-hit games, including a huge two-hit effort from third baseman Justin Turner, who went 2-for-5 with a solo shot, a grand slam and five RBI. The game was relatively close until his grand slam broke the contest open in the seventh inning.
After the Padres stepped out to a 2-0 lead, JTurner’s solo homer in the third cut the lead to one. Chris Taylor landed his ninth homer of the year into the center field stands in the fifth, tying the game at two. A single by Max Muncy in the sixth scored Mookie Betts and Freddie Freeman, pushing Los Angeles ahead and setting the stage for the monumental seventh inning.
In addition to JTurner, Betts, Freeman, Trea Turner and Cody Bellinger all had two hits apiece for the Dodgers.
The bullpen looked decent, despite the game being out of reach for the Padres later in the contest. Alex Vesia threw a perfect sixth inning with two punchouts, and Chris Martin threw a scoreless seventh, allowing just one hit.
Righty Andre Jackson tossed two scoreless frames to finish the game, surrendering two hits and walking none while striking out two.
The Dodgers recalled Jackson on Saturday after placing Blake Treinen on the injured list with shoulder soreness.
Speaking of Treinen, the veteran reliever downplayed the severity of the injury and expects to return sooner than later. The move is retroactive to September 7.
“There’s just a level of intensity here in the majors that I apparently can’t simulate,” Treinen said Saturday. “I’ve just got some soreness in the muscle. Might as well take the time to calm it down. The capsule feels great. It’s just the muscles around it now that are active and working again in more of a heightened environment.”
The Dodgers could have mathematically clinched the NL West on Sunday, but a Milwaukee win over Cincinnati prevented that from happening. Instead, the team will have a chance to secure the division crown against the Diamondbacks in Arizona, creating flashbacks of the infamous swimming pool incident back in 2013.
Lining up to start the first two games of the series for Los Angeles are Tyler Anderson on Monday and Clayton Kershaw on Tuesday.