LDN - Sports

Dodgers pound Phils, grab share of NL West lead

[August 10, 2016] LOS ANGELES -- The two-run homer was en vogue Tuesday night for the Los Angeles Dodgers. Three of them keyed another romp over the Philadelphia Phillies.

Howie Kendrick, Yasmani Grandal and Justin Turner delivered the long balls, and the Dodgers pulled into a first-place tie atop the National League West after a 9-3 victory over the Phillies at Dodger Stadium.

The Dodgers (64-49) won their fourth straight to match the San Francisco Giants for the division lead. The Phillies (52-63), who gave up nine runs for the second consecutive contest, lost for the third time in four games.

"The team's starting to come together," said Dodgers rookie shortstop Corey Seager, who went 2-for-5 with an RBI. "Everybody's picking each other up, whether it's the bullpen one night, the hitters the next night. It's what you're looking for at the end."

Kendrick drove in a game-high three runs on a night when fans received his bobblehead and his two young sons threw out ceremonial first pitches. Grandal homered for the second night in a row.

"It's a good night for the team, just in general," said Kendrick, who hit a home run against the Phillies for the first time in 15 career games. "We had a lot of guys come out and swing the bats well. It was just a fun night in general. A good night all around."

Los Angeles starter Kenta Maeda (11-7) allowed three runs on six hits with four strikeouts and two walks in five innings. Maeda also doubled and scored a run.

Three Dodgers relievers combined to finish up with four shutout innings.

Phillies starter Vince Velasquez was shelled for nine runs on 11 hits, three of those homers, in 4 2/3 innings. Velasquez (8-4) struck out six and walked three.

"I just missed locations, and they were putting good swings on the ball, and it ended up going over the wall," said Velasquez, a Southern California native. "That's what happens when you miss spots and you're deep into counts and you get into trouble."

Phillies manager Pete Mackanin attributed Velasquez's rough outing to his refusal to mix in more off-speed pitches with his fastball, clocked as high as 97 mph in the first inning when the right-hander struck out the side.

"A good-hitting team like the Dodgers with all the lefties they had in the lineup, he's got such a good changeup, I think he should have used it quite a bit more," Mackanin said. "He threw a handful, (but) he should have thrown a ton."

Velasquez rolled his eyes when told of Mackanin's assessment.

"I had a plan to attack guys," Velasquez said. "Challenging guys inside and outside. You can't go wrong with that."

Aaron Altherr took Maeda deep with a two-run shot to right-center for a 2-0 Philadelphia lead with one out in the second. It was Altherr's third home run this season.

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Dodgers shortstop Corey Seager (5) walks back to the dugout after being called out on strikes in the first inning of the game against the Philadelphia Phillies at Dodger Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY Sports

The Dodgers scored four runs in the bottom of the inning. Adrian Gonzalez led off with a double and scored on Joc Peterson's single. Kendrick followed with a two-run homer to center for a 3-2 Los Angeles edge. The homer was Kendrick's seventh of the season.

A run-scoring single by Seager brought home Maeda, who doubled, for a 4-2 advantage.

Grandal launched a two-run blast -- his career-high 18th homer -- to right in the third to increase the margin go 6-2.

Freddy Galvis hit his 10th home run in the fourth off Maeda, a solo shot to right to cut the deficit to three runs.

However, in the bottom of the inning, a two-run homer by Turner boosted the Dodgers' lead to 8-3. Turner, who is tied with Seager for the club lead in home runs with 21, has a 10-game hitting streak.

Kendrick's RBI double in the fifth made it 9-3.

NOTES: Dodgers RF Yasiel Puig, demoted to Triple-A Oklahoma City on Aug. 2, will be disciplined internally after a video released on social media showed him and his new teammates enjoying a rowdy celebration after a loss at Iowa. ... The Dodgers placed OF/1B Scott Van Slyke on the 15-day disabled list with right wrist irritation and recalled INF Chris Taylor from Oklahoma City. With the move, the Dodgers tied the 2012 Boston Red Sox for most players (27) going on the DL in the past 30 years. ... Phillies RHP Zach Eflin went on the disabled list due to patellar tendinopathy in both knees a day after he allowed seven runs, including three homers, in a 9-4 defeat against the Dodgers. Philadelphia called up LHP Elvis Araujo. ... Phillies RHP Jeremy Hellickson (9-7, 3.72 ERA) will face Dodgers LHP Scott Kazmir (9-5, 4.51 ERA) on Wednesday in the series finale.

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