news-engine

DENVER — The Dodgers found a silver bullet when they traded cash considerations for former Toronto Blue Jays pitcher Eric Lauer on May 17. The veteran left-hander has only lost once in 12 appearances (11 starts) since being traded to the Dodgers on May 17, going 7-1 with four no-decisions, all of them resulting in Dodgers wins. Lauer lasted five innings in the middle game of a three-game series with the Colorado Rockies on Tuesday night, allowing four runs on six hits and a walk while striking out six en route to a 7-6 victory. The Dodgers have a chance to secure a series sweep on their way out of town on Wednesday night. The Dodgers struck first, continuing their offensive onslaught from Monday’s opener and putting a couple of singles together in the first inning with a sacrifice fly fielded in foul territory by Rockies third baseman Willi Castro, who caught the ball with his back to the runner and too deep to throw out Freddie Freeman before he crossed home. The Rockies leveled the score with a single, a stolen base, and an RBI double from rookie Cole Carrigg in the bottom of the first. Shohei Ohtani kept rolling against the Rockies, launching his third home run in two days with a 448-foot, no-doubter into the Dodgers’ bullpen in the third inning. Ohtani’s 30th homer of the season was his only hit of the game, but he reached base twice more, on a fielder’s choice in the fourth and a fielding error by Rockies rookie Connor Norby in the sixth. TJ Rumfield pulled the Rockies within one with a run-scoring double off the center field wall in the third, followed by an RBI hustle double from Norby in the next at-bat to tie the score. The Dodgers’ offense never stopped, adding three more runs in the fourth with three straight doubles from Tommy Edman, Kyle Tucker, and Teoscar Hernandez and a sacrifice fly from Freeman, giving them a lead they would not relinquish. Tucker’s hit ended his career-high hitless streak at seven games (although he grounded out once and struck out twice in his other plate appearances). He had gone 26 consecutive at-bats without a hit. Castro hit a two-out solo homer into the left field bleachers off Lauer in the fifth, making it a 6-4 game. Hernandez led off the sixth with a triple to right-center and Freeman drove him in with a single to left. The Rockies threatened in the eighth with reliever Evan Phillips on the mound. Castro coaxed a leadoff walk followed by a single from Rumfield and an RBI single from pinch hitter Zac Veen to pull within two. Phillips retired the next two batters he faced before Manager Dave Roberts called on left-hander Tanner Scott. Scott finished the eighth and faced another threat when Jake McCarthy doubled into the right field corner with one out in the ninth, bringing the tying run to the plate. Scott retired Carrigg in a nine-pitch at-bat then yielded a run-scoring single to Castro, who reached base for the fifth time and brought Colorado within a run. Scott induced a pop-up to shortstop Mookie Betts to end the game and earn his team-leading 17th save. More to come on this story.