Los Angeles

Dodgers Complete Sweep of Mariners With 5-2 Victory On Jackie Robinson Day

The Dodgers beat the Mariners 5-2 on Jackie Robinson Day to sweep the three-game series.

“Maybe we’ll all wear 42, that way they won’t tell us apart,” said Pee Wee Reese in the movie 42.

Reese’s vision came to fruition on the diamond as the annual Civil Rights Game was held at Dodger Stadium on Wednesday to commemorate the 68th anniversary of the day Jackie Robinson broke the color barrier.

“Today is a day of remembrance and honor of Jackie Robinson,” said Dodgers shortstop Jimmy Rollins. “Jackie pioneered the modern game of baseball and integrated it. Now the game is international, you can point back to a number of guys for that, but definitely it started with Jackie Robinson and the Dodgers organization.”

The Dodgers outfielders did most of the damage on the day as Andre Ethier, Scott Van Slyke and Joc Pederson all knocked in runs and Los Angeles completed the three-game sweep of the Mariners with a 5-2 victory.

Ethier went 2 for 3 with an RBI when he singled to left and scored Yasmani Grandal in the first inning. It was Ethier’s fourth consecutive game with a hit as the 33-year-old hit a double, triple and home run over that span.

Van Slyke hit a two-run double off the left field wall as the Dodgers tagged Seattle starter Taijuan Walker for three runs by the time fans found their seats.

“I didn’t establish my fastball enough early,” Walker said. “It was frustrating. Everything was up, fastball was up. It’s tough when I don’t have command of my fastball. It’s my best pitch.”

Nelson Cruz homered for the fifth consecutive game in the top half of the fourth inning. It was Cruz’s sixth round-tripper in five games and the second longest in Mariners history behind Ken Griffey Jr. (8 straight in 1993).

Adrian Gonzalez went 2 for 5 with an RBI, extending his hitting steak to 11 games. Gonzalez also has 19 hits through the first nine games of the season, an all-time franchise record for the Dodgers.

The Mariners threatened at multiple points throughout the game, but everytime it seemed they had a rally going they shot themselves in the foot. Mike Zunino lead off the Seattle half of the 5th with a ground-rule double. Two batters later, pinch-hitter Justin Ruggiano hit a line drive up the middle. Zunino hesitated before breaking to third and rookie Joc Pederson made a tremendous throw to gun Zunino out at the plate.

“He threw me out yesterday and he got me again today, so I’m glad I could return the favor,” joked Pederson. “Defense is huge, and it wins ballgames. To be able to take one away from someone is always nice to do. It brings some momentum to the team and it gives the pitcher some more confidence to make his pitch.”

It was the second sensational play by Pederson on the night as the young outfielder robbed Zunino of extra bases earlier in the game with a diving catch in centerfield. Pederson went 1-1 with three walks and singled home the fifth run of the game in the third inning.

With the bases loaded and the Mariners trailing 5-1 in the sixth inning, Kyle Seager hit an RBI groundout to third off Paco Rodriguez to bring the M’s closer. Rodriguez walked Morrison a batter later and Seattle second baseman, Robinson Cano was inexplicably caught jogging to home thinking the bases were loaded.

“I felt like I was the dumbest guy in the game,“ said an embarrassed Cano. “I thought there was bases loaded. I should have been paying more attention to the game. I’m human. I’m going to make mistakes. But those are the kind of things that I can’t let happen again. There’s no excuse for that.”

Brett Anderson (1-0) got his first win in a Dodgers uniform allowing two runs on six hits through five innings. Anderson is now 8-4 lifetime against Seattle with a 1.81 ERA over 16 games.

“I have to tip my hat to Robinson Cano a little bit for the out,” smiled Anderson from his locker. “You can’t really expect that from one of the best players in the game, but we’ll take outs anyway we can get them.”

Walker (0-2) was handed the loss as he was charged with all five Dodgers’ runs on six hits through four innings.

The Dodgers used a committee of closers in the ninth as Pedro Baez and J.P. Howell pitched a perfect inning to complete the sweep. Howell did not face enough batters in the inning to record the save, but if he had, he would have become the fourth Dodgers reliever to earn a save this season.

Game Notes:
Dodgers legends; Don Newcombe, Sandy Koufax, Tommy Lasorda and owner Earvin “Magic” Johnson joined Jackie Robinson’s widow, Rachel, on the field for a ceremony before the game.

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