The Dodgers just did what seemed impossible without Clayton Kershaw
Welcome to The Walk Off, the nightly MLB recap from Big League Stew. Here we’ll look at the top performers of the night, show you a must-see highlight and rundown the scoreboard. First, we start with a game you need to know about.
It goes against logic. It flies in the face of everything this game has taught us to believe. But sometimes baseball just makes you shrug in disbelief, doesn’t it?
The Los Angeles Dodgers — who were seven games back in the NL West when Clayton Kershaw went down with a back injury on June 28 — have tied the San Francisco Giants for the top spot in the division. And Clayton Kershaw still hasn’t returned.
If you would have told a Dodgers fan this arc of events back on June 28, they would argued to have you committed. It would have literally seemed like crazy talk. The Dodgers catching the Giants without Kershaw?!?
Well, it’s true. The Dodgers slugged their way past the Philadelphia Phillies on Tuesday night, a 9-3 win that was L.A.’s fourth straight. That pulled the Dodgers even with the Giants, who lost to the Miami Marlins earlier in the night by the score of 2-0.
What’s more amazing is that Kershaw is hardly the only Dodgers pitcher hurt. The Dodgers have already set an NL record for players on the DL (26 players and 28 trips total). Six of them have been starting pitchers, everybody from Kershaw and Hyun-jin Ryu to reinforcements Bud Norris and Rich Hill. And here they are, tied atop the division.
The Giants have certainly helped, going 14-17 since July 1 as they’ve struggled with their own injuries. In that same time, the Dodgers are 19-12. There’s still a lot of baseball left, of course, but for everything the Dodgers have been through, they’ve got to feel fantastic about being tied with the Giants in the second week of August.
TOP PERFORMERS
Jose Altuve: If you weren’t impressed enough by Altuve’s MVP-quality season, he was 4-for-4 Tuesday night for the Houston Astros in their 7-5 win over the Minnesota Twins. It’s his seventh four-hit game of the season.
Jose Ramirez: If not for Ramirez, it might be Max Scherzer getting this shine. Scherzer took a no-hitter into the seventh inning against Ramirez’s Cleveland Indians. It was a 0-0 game in the seventh, though, when Francisco Lindor singled to break up the no-no, then Ramirez doubled him home. Ramirez also cemented Cleveland’s 3-1 win with an RBI single in the ninth.
Rick Porcello: While Boston Red Sox fans spent part of the game chanting “We Want A-Rod,” they certainly owed Porcello some love too. Porcello pitched eight strong innings, allowing two runs and striking out six in Boston’s 5-3 win. Porcello notched his 15th win, which ties him with Stephen Strasburg for the most in baseball.
MUST-SEE HIGHLIGHT
Todd Frazier, aka The Toddfather, put this one to bed in style. Frazier’s three-run, 10th inning homer broke a 4-4 tie and was the difference in the White Sox’s 7-5 win over the Royals.
THE REST OF THE SCOREBOARD
Cubs 5, Angels 1: Kris Bryant and Willson Contreras homer for the Cubs, who win their eighth straight game.
Mariners 6, Tigers 5: The Mariners win their fifth straight by scoring two runs in the bottom of the 15th — on a Kyle Seager single and a Mike Zunino sac fly — for a wild comeback victory. Victor Martinez had homered in the top of the 15th to put the Tigers ahead.
D-backs 5, Mets 3: Zack Greinke returns from the disabled list, pitching six innings, striking out six and improving to 11-3.
A’s 2, Orioles 1: Oakland scratches out a win from a Danny Valencia double and a Khris Davis sac fly.
Rangers 7, Rockies 5: Texas scores five runs in the last three innings to upend Colorado.
Pirates 6, Padres 4: Gregory Polanco drives in three and David Freese has three hits for the Buccos.
Rays 9, Blue Jays 2: Evan Longoria goes 3-for-5 with three RBIs as the Rays knock out 15 hits.
Braves 2, Brewers 1: Adonis Garcia — best name in the big leagues, maybe — gives the Braves the go-ahead run with a seventh-inning single.
Reds 7, Cardinals 4: The Reds rally for three in the eighth inning to top the Cardinals.
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Mike Oz is the editor of Big League Stew on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at mikeozstew@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter! Follow @MikeOz
