Surprising D-back has Kershaw's number
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LOS ANGELES -- The D-backs recalled 27-year-old first baseman Christian Walker from Triple-A Reno this past week because they wanted some thump off the bench.
Walker provided just that on Saturday night when he launched a pinch-hit home run off Clayton Kershaw to lead off the sixth inning of the D-backs' 3-2 to loss at Dodger Stadium.
"It was the right guy in the right spot," D-backs manager Torey Lovullo said. "He hit a long home run off him at Chase. I just felt like he was going to match up very well and he didn't let me down. He went up there and he executed a good game plan."
It was Walker's fifth career home run, with four of them coming as a pinch-hitter. Both of his home runs this season were pinch-hit homers off the Dodgers' ace.
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Walker homered against Kershaw on May 1 at Chase Field, and that homer landed in someone's dinner at Friday's Front Row Grill, travelling a projected 479 feet, which is the longest homer hit off Kershaw since Statcast™ began tracking in 2015.
Walker's homer Saturday gave the D-backs a 2-0 lead.