ATLANTA – Picking your poison still means you’re stuck with poison.
For the second time in two weeks, an opponent opted to intentionally walk Shohei Ohtani in a close game, preferring to face Mookie Betts. Betts made the Angels pay the first time with a three-run home run in the 10th inning of a Dodgers victory.
Betts came through again Sunday night, lining a go-ahead RBI single through the middle to give the Dodgers their first lead of this series. They uncorked the whole bottle after that, scoring seven times in the ninth inning to beat the Atlanta Braves 9-2
The Braves had reason to fear Ohtani. He drove in the Dodgers’ first two runs of the game with doubles in the fifth and seventh innings, ending a stretch of 11 hitless at-bats.
Those runs left the Dodgers in a 2-2 tie in the ninth inning, facing Braves closer Raisel Iglesias who hadn’t given up a run since June 18.
Will Smith nearly gave the Dodgers the lead with a drive that bounced off the top of the brick wall in right-center field. He wound up with a triple.
After Andy Pages grounded out, Smith holding at third base, the Braves quickly waved Ohtani to first base, bringing up Betts. He lashed a 1-and-1 fastball through the middle to drive in the go-ahead run.
The wheels came off for the Braves after that. Freddie Freeman singled to left field where Jarred Kelenic misplayed the ball, allowing two runs to score. The next three hitters — Teoscar Hernandez, Tommy Edman and Max Muncy — hit home runs.
That put the finishing touches on a positive night in other ways.
Walker Buehler walked five in the first three innings and wobbled through a two-run third inning when his defense let him down. But he got through six innings, didn’t allow any more runs and made a significant step forward in his September audition for October starts.
Buehler’s first three innings against the Braves, though, were very much on brand for the difficult season he has had.
He walked five of the first 13 batters he faced. The Braves stranded two in the second inning. But a catcher’s interference by Austin Barnes helped load the bases with one out in the third.
Buehler got ahead of Matt Olson 0-and-2 but wound up walking him – a familiar inability to finish off hitters that has plagued him in his comeback season.
That forced in a run. Another scored when Gavin Lux fielded Travis d’Arnaud’s ground ball behind second base but couldn’t flip it to shortstop Tommy Edman in time to get the force out at second base.
Buehler was a different pitcher after that. He retired 10 of the final 11 batters he faced. After throwing 31 pitches in the extended third inning and 70 in the first three, he needed just 27 to hold the Braves scoreless over the next three.
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