Turner's 5 RBIs ignite Dodgers in win

MIAMI -- At a time when the Dodgers needed answers, they put all phases of the game together for a 7-0 win over the Marlins on Thursday at Marlins Park to take the three-game series finale and snap a six-game losing streak.
Justin Turner did most of the damage, while starting pitcher Kenta Maeda (3-3) twirled a masterful game with outstanding defense behind him.
Maeda threw eight innings of two-hit ball, struck out eight and didn't issue a walk. For one afternoon, anyway, the Dodgers looked like the team that pushed the 2017 World Series to seven games.
A slight tweak in mechanics is what Maeda said helped him through his 96-pitch outing.
"I was rushing my delivery a little bit, so I made sure that I put the weight on my leg before I pitched," he added through an interpreter.

It was good timing that Turner returned from the disabled list in Miami. The Dodgers' third baseman went 3-for-4 on Thursday, including two doubles, and scored twice before Max Muncy came in as a defensive replacement in the sixth inning.
A consistent a good hitter against Miami, Turner said there's something about the expansiveness of Marlins Park that gives him at least a mental edge.
"I do enjoy hitting here," Turner said. "I feel like when you're in the box and you look out there, there's just a lot of space, a lot of hits out there. Some places you go -- Cincinnati is one of them -- you feel like there's not a lot of hits out there unless you hit it over the fence, because the park is so small. You feel like there's 12 defenders out there."
Turner belted a bases-loaded two-bagger in the third inning, then added a two-run double in the fourth to tie his career high in RBIs with five.
"He really seems like he hasn't missed a beat," Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said. "He's on time. He's finding the barrel. But I think the bottom line is that once he gets in the batter's box, it's about competing. It's not about mechanics or anything like that. Every time he's been in the box, it's been a quality at-bat."

Turner's first knock scored Yasiel Puig, Chris Taylor and Austin Barnes, who all walked, to give the Dodgers a 3-0 lead. The trio of RBIs marked the first of the season for Turner, who then scored on a double by Matt Kemp, who finished 3-for-4 with a pair of doubles and an RBI.
But Turner wasn't done there, sending another ball into left field to push the Dodgers' lead to 7-0.
Puig lined his third homer of the season into the left-field stands in the fourth inning, a 434-foot solo shot with a 110.4-mph exit velocity and 20-degree launch angle, per Statcast™.
"We all, as a collective group, have done a good job of getting people on base," Kemp said. "We just haven't had that timely hit. We got one of our best hitters back and he had a big day for us today. I think that kind of relaxed everybody and we saw some good things."

Turner has hit safely in all three games this season after returning from a fracture in his left wrist sustained in Spring Training when he was hit by a pitch.
MOMENT THAT MATTERED
The mindset Maeda took to the mound played a big part in his effectiveness right from the start.
"Just the mindset of attacking the hitters and making sure that I have that mindset throughout the outing. I think that worked today," he said.
SOUND SMART
With today's win, the Dodgers keep intact a streak of having never been swept at Marlins Park, where they are now 13-9 all-time. They were, however, last swept in Miami on Sept. 6-8, 1999, at Pro Players Stadium.

HE SAID IT
"This is a place, kind of like Colorado, it's huge and you look out and it looks like there's monster gaps out there and there's a lot of hits to be had." -- Turner, on hitting at Marlins Park
UP NEXT
The Dodgers open a three-game series in Washington beginning with a 4:05 p.m. PT Friday opener. Right-hander Ross Stripling looks to reverse his trend against the Nationals. He is 0-1 lifetime in two games against Washington with a 21.60 ERA and a 2.40 WHIP. Right-hander Max Scherzer takes the mound for the Nationals. The game will be broadcast live on MLB.TV, and is also the MLB Network Showcase.