*Photo from the Los Angeles Times*
Best in the west once again. Kolten Wong got it started, Chris Taylor and Kike Hernandez each drove in two runs, and the Los Angeles Dodgers defeated the Seattle Mariners with a 6-2 victory in extra innings on Saturday night in Seattle.
Winning the first two games of the series, the Dodgers have secured their second straight NL West championship and 10th in 11 years. They sit 5 1/2 games back of the Atlanta Braves for the top seed in the NL at 90-57, but for now they can enjoy another postseason appearance secured.
Dodgers pitcher Clayton Kershaw said that "Every year’s different, but you just can’t take it for granted. It’s a special thing to get to celebrate with the guys that work so hard throughout the whole year to achieve a goal like this. Obviously it’s not the ultimate goal, but to be able to do this, to get to have a night to celebrate with your teammates is so special. There’s guys that go their whole careers without getting to do this one time."
The scoring in this game didn't start until the 10th inning. With Amed Rosario on 3rd base, Wong was able to bring him home on a sac fly to give the Dodgers a 1-0 lead. In the bottom of the 10th, Mike Ford tied the score for the Mariners with an RBI single. In the top of the 11th, Mookie Betts scored on a Max Muncy single to make it 2-1 Dodgers.
Later in the 11th, Taylor came through for the Dodgers, scoring Muncy and Will Smith to give the Dodgers a 4-1 lead. A few batters later, Hernandez had his moment, hitting a two run single of his own to make it 6-1 Dodgers. Teoscar Hernandez scored on a wild pitch in the bottom of the 11th, but the Dodgers held on from there.
Dodgers DH JD Martinez said of the team that "It’s a great team, a very talented team, and we have a tough road ahead of us. Obviously we’re not thinking about this. We’re thinking about the future. We’re trying to get to the World Series. Our lineup is deep, our pitching is deep, and for us to experience the injuries we had and to be able to have young guys just step in and play their roles, it seems like we’ve always had an answer. Every time someone’s gone down, someone steps in."
Kershaw started for the Dodgers, pitching 4 shutout innings. Emmet Sheehan threw 3 scoreless innings before Alex Vesia and Ryan Brasier combined to pitch the 8th. Brusdar Graterol pitched a scoreless 9th before Evan Phillips and Joe Kelly each allowed a run in one inning pitched.
Bryce Miller pitched 5 1/3 shutout innings for the Mariners in his start. Tayler Saucedo and Matt Brash each threw 1 1/3 innings before Andres Munoz worked a scoreless 9th. Justin Topa allowed a run in the 10th before Gabe Speier and Isaiah Campbell combined to allow 5 in the 11th inning.
Seattle manager Scott Servais said after the game that "I feel very strongly and very confident we will be playing October baseball. It's not going to be easy. And every game is going to be like it was tonight. It's going to be 0-0, 1-1, 3-3, whatever it is. It'll flip."
Up next, the series concludes on Sunday afternoon. The Dodgers have not announced a starter as they go for the series sweep. The Mariners try to salvage a game with Logan Gilbert getting the start.
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