MLB

Dodgers Hit a Season-High 5 Homers in 7-3 Victory Over Braves

The Los Angeles Dodgers hit a season-high five home runs, as they defeated the Atlanta Braves, 7-3, on Friday night at Dodger Stadium.

Chicks dig the long ball.

The Los Angeles Dodgers hit a season-high five home runs, as they defeated the Atlanta Braves, 7-3, on Friday night at Dodger Stadium. 

Following a victory over the Pittsburgh Pirates in the rubber match that extended their series unbeaten streak to six, the Dodgers got back over the .500 mark for the first time since April 23, when they were 11-10. 

It was Friday Night Fireworks night at the Ravine, but for the 47,262 fans in attendance, it was the fireworks display put on by the players that had everyone talking after the game. 

Yasmani Grandal had a pair of homers, Joc Pederson and Max Muncy went back-to-back, and Cody Bellinger crashed the party late with his fourth home run in four straight games. 

"I think the home run is a big part of the game nowadays with our team included," said Bellinger of the home run barrage that saw the Boys in Blue leapfrog three teams ahead of them for the most home runs in the National League (78). "I'm just going to try and keep it going."

Yasiel Puig put the Dodgers on the board with an RBI single in the bottom of the first inning, but was picked off first base immediately after and would later leave the game for what Dodgers' manager Dave Roberts called an "in-house thing."

Grandal began what would be his first multi-homer game of the season with a solo shot off a Brandon McCarthy sinker in the bottom of the second inning.

Grandal was McCarthy's catcher for the last three seasons and credited his knowledge of his former pitcher for the big blasts at the plate.

"That always helps a lot," said Grandal about his familiarity with his former pitchers. I've always told the guys, 'If I catch you for a long time, when you face me it's going to be a battle.' I was able to put two good swings on mistakes over the strike zone and I hit them out."

If Grandal won the battle with McCarthy in his first at-bat, he ended the war with a bomb of nuclear prorportions in his second at-bat.

"I think his familiarity helped a lot," said Roberts of Grandal's success against McCarthy. "We obviously know Brandon well and he knows us well, but nobody knows him better than his catcher."

Grandal's second solo shot marked the 100th home run of his career and his first multi-homer game since June 21, 2017 against the New York Mets. Grandal has hit well at home this season, batting .289 with 15 runs, two doubles, six homer and 14 RBI along with a .940 OPS in 25 games.

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Walker Buehler was pefect through the first four innings before Nick Markakis led off the fifth inning with a single.

A few pitches later, Buehler surrendered his first and only run of the game on an RBI double off the bat of Kurt Suzuki that put the Braves on the board. 

Joc Pederson and Max Muncy became the fourth Dodgers duo to go back-to-back this season when they homered off different pitchers in the bottom of the fifth inning. 

"We were seeing the ball well tonight," said Muncy after the game. "You see guys ahead of you hit home runs and it gets you pumped up and makes you want to hit one yourself. It's one of those things where it's just a little bit contagious right now."

Pederson continued his home run tear with his sixth longball in his last six games off McCarthy. After a pitching change, Muncy blasted his 10th home run of the season off Braves' reliever, Sam Freeman, and the Dodgers took a 5-1 lead.

McCarthy took the loss against his former team after allowing four runs on five hits over 4 and 2/3 innings and allowed a season-high three home runs.

Meanwhile, Buehler (4-1) allowed just one run on two hits with no walks and four strikeouts, but was forced to leave the game with one out in the fifth inning because of rib soreness.

"Obviously, him taking that ball of the ribs a couple weeks ago there was always something there," said Roberts of the injury to Buehler. "You saw in that sixth inning the velocity tick down a little bit and to me that was a big red flag that he was protecting. He said that he had a little bit of trouble breating and was in pain."

The game also marked the first time Buehler faced his former college teammate Dansby Swanson at the Big League level. Buehler and Swanson were roommates at Vanderbilt University during their freshman year.

NBC LA Sports reporter Michael J. Duarte interviews Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Walker Buehler about a hot brown sandwich, his love of Skrillex, and who his celebrity crush is.

Johan Camargo, who entered the game in the fifth inning as a defensive substation, slugged his sixth home run of the season with a solo shot in the eighth inning off Adam Liberatore.

Cody Bellinger joined the home run barrage with a moon shot to right field in the bottom of the eighth inning that extended the Dodgers lead to 7-3. 

Bellinger has now homered in four consecutive games for the first time in his MLB career, and gave the Dodgers a season-high five home runs in a single game.

The Dodgers have won 16 of their last 21 games and are unbeaten in their last six series.

Up Next:

RHP Anibal Sanchez will take the mound for Atlanta on Saturday with LHP Alex Wood expected to get the call for the Dodgers. First pitch is at 6:10PM PST.

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