Los Angeles

Yasmani Grandal and Justin Turner Lift Dodgers over Cubs, 6-0, in Game 3 of NLCS

Yasmani Grandal and Justin Turner both went deep off Jake Arrieta and the Los Angeles Dodgers defeated the Chicago Cubs, 6-0, in Game 3 of the National League Championship Series at Dodger Stadium on Tuesday night.

There's no place like home.

Yasmani Grandal and Justin Turner both went deep off Jake Arrieta and the Los Angeles Dodgers defeated the Chicago Cubs, 6-0, in Game 3 of the National League Championship Series at Dodger Stadium on Tuesday night.

Grandal was facing a full count with two outs and a runner on third in the bottom of the fourth inning when the 2015 Cy Young Award winner tried to blow a four-seam fastball by him over the heart of the plate.

"I just wanted to stay alive," Grandal said of the at-bat that started with him falling into an 0-2 hole. "He still made a really good pitch down in the zone. I was just lucky to put a good swing on it."

It was a great swing, reminiscent of a Tiger Woods tee shot, and Grandal sent the ball into the bleachers in right-center as the sold out crowd at Chavez Ravine reached a fever pitch and the Dodgers took a 3-0 lead.

The long ball was Grandal's first extra-base hit of the playoffs and the first home run by a Dodger off Arrieta in his six-year big league career.

Sports

Get today's sports news out of Los Angeles. Here's the latest on the Dodgers, Lakers, Angels, Kings, Galaxy, LAFC, USC, UCLA and more LA teams.

Everything you need to know about the Dodgers Opening Week at Chavez Ravine

No. 1 UNC upset by No. 4 Alabama 89-87 in March Madness

"That one swing got me back into what I've been trying to do for a while now," Grandal said of his first postseason home run. "It definitely is a confidence boost."

Turner led off the bottom of the sixth inning with a first-pitch homer to dead-center—his second of the postseason—and the Dodgers chased Arrieta from the game by mounting a four-run lead against the Cubbies.

Turner and Grandal led the Dodgers in home runs during the regular season with 27 apiece and both put the team on their backs in Game 3.

"He doesn't make a lot of mistakes, so when he does, you can't miss him," Turner said of Arrieta. "He left a first-pitch silder up over the plate and I got a hold of it."

Arrieta took the loss, allowing four runs on six hits with no walks, five strikeouts and two home runs allowed in just five innings on Tuesday night.

"I thought Jake threw the ball well," said Cubs manager Joe Maddon. "The pitch to Grandal looked decent on the monitor, he hasn't been hitting the ball well, but then he grabs one right there. That kind of surprised him and us at that particular juncture."

Corey Seager got the Dodgers on the board with a two-out RBI single in the third inning. The RBI was the first for Seager in the postseason with runners in scoring position, snapping an 0-for-15 slump, and his first hit outside of the first inning during the 2016 MLB playoffs.

"I try to get a hit every AB," Seager said smiling. "Whether it's the first, seventh or ninth, I'm always trying to do whatever I can to help my team. It was kind of nice to get one outside the first though."

Rich Hill earned his first ever win in the playoffs, shutting down the Cubs high-potent offense, allowing just one hit with two walks and six strikeouts in six dominant innings for the Dodgers.

"I got better as the game went on," Hill said in his postgame press conference. "My curveball command definitely got better. I think we were able to establish a fastball and throw breaking balls for strikes."

Hill was masterful against the team that he made his MLB debut with in 2005. The Cubs also gave Hill his first career postseason start in Game 3 of the NLDS against the Diamondbacks in 2007. He returned to the favor on Tuesday.

Hill entered the game having made just 24 starts over seven seasons in his Major League career. According to Elias Sports Bureau, he is the first pitcher in history to win a postseason game with as few starts over seven seasons. The previous record was held by another Dodger, Clem Labine, who made 35 starts in seven years before winning game 6 of the 1956 World Series for the Brooklyn Dodgers.

"This was the biggest game of my career," agreed Hill. "It's all about staying in the moment, and that's all you can think about. All you can control is the next pitch."

The Dodgers tacked on two more insurance runs in the bottom of the eighth after an RBI double down the left field line by Joc Pederson scored Yasiel Puig from first. 

Pederson promptly stole third and scored one-batter later on a ground out to the shortstop by Grandal.

"We knew that if we executed our game plan the swings would be there and the hard contact would be there," said Adrian Gonzalez who snapped a 13-game postseaon home hitting streak on Tuesday. "Yasmani had a big home run, JT added on, and we kept adding on after that."

Joe Blaton, Grant Dayton, and Kenley Jansen combined to pitch three scoreless innings of relief as the closer kept the Cubs off the the scoreboard in a non-save situation.

It was the first time the Dodgers have thrown back-to-back shutouts in their team's postseaon history and the Cubs have now been held scoreless for 18 straight innings, the longest drought in their playoff history.

Los Angeles now leads the best-of-seven series against Chicago with Game 4 set for tomorrow at 5:08 PM PST.

Players of the Game:

Yasmani Grandal: Two-run home run.
Rich Hill:  
Six shutout innings
Justin Turner: Solo home run. 

Three Takeaways:

1. Long Overdue: Corey Seager's RBI single in the third inning was the first run batted in off of Jake Arrieta since Carl Crawford hit a two-run double off the 2015 Cy Young Award winner on August 26, 2013.

2. You Always Remember Your First Time: Yasmani Grandal hit his first career postseason home run when he sent Jake Arrieta deep in the bottom of the fourth inning for a two-run blast that gave the Dodgers a 3-0 lead. Not only was it Grandal's first playoff homer, it was also the Dodgers first home run off Arrieta in his six years in the big leagues.

3. Deep Dish: The Los Angeles Dodgers have homered in all eight games they've played this postseason, matching the 2008-2009 team for second longest streak in postseason history.

Up Next:

Cubs (1-2): Veteran right-hander John Lackey will face the Dodgers for the first time since Game 3 of the 2014 NLDS in St. Louis on Wednesday in Game 4.

Dodgers (2-1): 20-year-old Julio Urias becomes the youngest starting pitcher in NLCS history when he starts in Game 4 at 5:08 PM PST.

Please refresh this page for more updates, stats and player reactions…

Contact Us