LOS ANGELES – Trayce Thompson hit his first career walk-off home run with two outs in the bottom of the ninth and the Los Angeles Dodgers defeated the New York Mets 3-2 on Tuesday night at Dodger Stadium.
Thompson homered for the second consecutive game, but did not start in the second game of the series with right-hander Jacob deGrom on the mound for the Mets.
"That was exciting," Thompson said after the heroic homer. "That's obviously a very good day, hopefully we can use this as a springboard forward and keep rolling."
Despite not starting, Thompson still played the role of hero as he pinch-hit for Kenley Jansen with two outs in the bottom of the ninth.
The brother of Golden State Warriors' guard Klay Thompson, crushed a 2-2 fastball into the left field pavilion as the Dodgers enjoyed their first walk-off victory since August 31, 2015 against the San Francisco Giants.
"He threw me a fastball over the plate that I was able to handle," Thompson said of the last pitch of the game. "It was a special feeling."
Hansel Robles (0-2) took the loss, surrendering the pinch-hit homer to Thompson.
The Dodgers jumped on deGrom in the first inning, leading off the game with back-to-back doubles to left-center by Chase Utley and Corey Seager. Two batters later, Adrian Gonzalez scored Seager on a sacrifice fly to left. In all, four different Dodger hitters doubled in the game.
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New York would answer in the top half of the second after consecutive singles by Yoenis Cespedes and Wilmer Flores. One pitch later, Michael Conforto appeared to ground into a double play, but Chase Utley threw the ball into left field, allowing a run to score and the runners to advance.
Similarly to how he did in the NLDS games at Dodger Stadium, deGrom settled down and did not allow a run the rest of the way. He did not factor in the decision, allowing two runs on eight hits with four strikeouts in seven strong innings.
Dodgers' starter Alex Wood outpitched deGrom, lowering his career ERA at Dodger Stadium to 1.79 (second lowest among active players, J.P. Howell). The left-hander from North Carolina allowed two runs (one earned) on just four hits with a season-high nine strikeouts in 6 and 1/3 innings of work.
"I felt pretty crisp. I made everything more consistent across the board," Wood said of his strong start. "My timing and consistency of everything has been a big help. Hopefully, I can solidify it as we move forward."
Jansen (1-0) picked up his first win of the season, pitching a perfect top of the ninth inning out of the pen for Los Angeles. The Dodgers victory was just their second at home in their last nine games.
Players of the Game:
Trayce Thompson: Pinch-hit, walk-off home run in the bottom of the ninth.
Alex Wood: 2 runs (1 ER), on 4 hits with 9 strikeouts in 6.1 IP.
Corey Seager: 2-for-4 with two doubles, an RBI and a run scored.
Three Takeaways:
1. HomeWood: Alex Wood outpitched Jacob deGrom for most of the game, allowing just one earned run in 6.1 innings on Monday night. In 2016, Wood's earned run average at home is 1.34, but on the road it's a different story as his ERA is 8.05 away from the confines of Chavez Ravine.
Alex Wood's 2016 ERA at Dodger Stadium: 1.34. On the road: 8.05. — Joey Kaufman (@joeyrkaufman) May 11, 2016
2. DeGrominated: In the last 10 months, the Dodgers have scored just four runs against deGrom in four games against him. The Florida native has surrendered four runs with six walks and 32 strikeouts in his last 27.2 innings (including the playoffs) against Los Angeles.
Tonight's starter @JdeGrom19 went 2-0 with a 1.38 ERA against the Dodgers in last year's NLDS. #MetsFacts #LGM pic.twitter.com/ByEeDH9GmA — New York Mets (@Mets) May 11, 2016
3. Splash Brother: The younger brother of Golden State Warriors' guard Klay Thompson might be worthy of the nickname after he hit his second straight home run on Tuesday night. The walk-off home run was Thompson's first of his career and first pinch-hit home run of his career. In fact, it was the first pinch-hit, walk-off homer since Scott Van Slyke on Sept. 10, 2013.
The real Splash Brother.
Trayce Thompson #Dodgers pic.twitter.com/3qTI31A8AR — Michael J. Duarte (@michaeljduarte) May 11, 2016
Up Next:
Mets (20-12): Another flame throwing right-hander goes for New York on Wednesday as the man they call "Thor," Noah Syndergaard takes the hill for the Mets.
Dodgers (17-16): Los Angeles will counter Thor with Kenta Maeda as "Maedamania" continues at Dodger Stadium. Frist pitch is 7:10PM PST.
