Andre Ethier is the forgotten man on the Los Angeles Dodgers
roster. Once a star, Ethier is now on the outside looking in with Carl
Crawford, Yasiel Puig and Matt Kemp holding down the starting outfield jobs and
Scott Van Slyke getting spot starts.
But tonight, with one out and runners on first and third in
the bottom of the ninth, pinch-hitter Ethier slapped a Kevin Jepsen pitch to third base
where David Freese, playing in tight to prevent the run at the plate,
bare-handed the soft tapper and fired to Chris Iannetta at the plate.
Freese’s throw arrived at home the same time Juan Uribe
reached the plate and Iannetta could not hold onto the throw, allowing Uribe to
score the winning run and post a 5-4 victory.
Dodgers’ ace Clayton Kershaw gave up two runs in the second
and another in the third inning with Iannetta and Freese hitting back-to-back
doubles to spark the Angels. Kershaw went seven innings but left without a
decision.
Down 2-0, Uribe answered in the bottom of the second with a
three-run shot to left to score Kemp and Van Slyke.
The Angels tied the score in the third when Mike Trout and
Pujols hit back-to-back doubles off Kershaw.
Kershaw settled down after the third inning, however,
pitching no-hit ball for the next four innings and striking out five batters.
The Dodgers took a 4-3 lead in the sixth when Kemp reached
first on a throwing error by Freese, stole second and went to third when
Iannetta’s throw skipped into center field. Van Slyke then cashed him in with a
sac fly to center.
Pujols knotted the game at 4-4 in the eighth when he
went yard on Brian Wilson, crushing a fastball into the Dodgers’ bullpen.
Kenley Jansen pitched the ninth and struck out the side,
setting down Freese, Iannetta and Collin Cowgill.
Uribe started the ninth inning rally when he singled to
right off of Jepsen and moved to third on a single up the middle by A.J. Ellis,
hitting a paltry .190. Uribe was able to go to third on the play because he was
running on the pitch and kept motoring into third.
Ethier then got the walk-off with his tapper to third that
was enough to score Uribe.
San Francisco lost tonight, putting the Dodgers up 2.5 games
in the National League West.
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