DENVER – The Los Angeles Dodgers, leading the National League West, managed to maintain their edge by defeating the Colorado Rockies 9-7 on Tuesday night. Michael Conforto fueled the Dodgers with a pivotal three-run homer while Shohei Ohtani added to the excitement with a two-run shot of his own.
Despite starting the game trailing 2-0, the Dodgers unleashed a powerful offensive surge in the fourth inning, scoring six runs. Conforto took advantage of a misplaced knuckle-curve from Germán Márquez (3-9), sending it soaring over the right-field wall. Shohei Ohtani further solidified the lead with his 27th home run of the season in the sixth inning, a line drive into the left-field seats, putting the score at 8-3. This homer marked a milestone for Ohtani, symbolizing his 300th career home run when combining the major leagues and Nippon Professional Baseball.
The eighth inning brought a charge from the Rockies, with Jordan Beck hitting a two-run double to tighten the score to 8-7. However, any hopes of a comeback were short-lived when Teoscar Hernández secured an insurance run for the Dodgers with an RBI double in the ninth. Closing pitcher Tanner Scott then sealed the game with his 16th save by inducing a game-ending double play.
Justin Wrobleski (3-2) handled pitching duties efficiently for the Dodgers, working five innings and conceding only two runs while striking out seven batters. He took over after starting duties were covered by Jack Dreyer. Meanwhile, on the opposing team, Márquez ended up allowing six runs, of which four were earned, over his four innings.
Rockies first baseman Michael Toglia, while struggling defensively with two fielding errors and a poor throw during a crucial fourth inning, made up for it at the plate with three doubles and two RBIs.
With this loss, the Rockies fell to a 18-61 overall record and a mere 8-30 at their home ground, Coors Field. The team is still in search of consecutive home victories this season.
In a standout defensive play, Dodgers third baseman Max Muncy skillfully snatched a slow-rolling ball with his bare hand in the first inning, successfully throwing out Thairo Estrada and preventing a score. Estrada was initially called safe but upon review, the call was reversed.
As they head into the next game, the Dodgers are proud of their 11 comeback victories in the current month of June out of 22 games played. They will be sending right-handed pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto (6-6, 2.76 ERA) to the mound on Wednesday to go against the Rockies’ right-hander Chase Dollander (2-7, 6.19 ERA).