Banged-up Dodgers ride homers past Phils

LOS ANGELES -- Due to injuries, the Dodgers haven’t been able to roll out their best lineup since the first week of the season. Max Muncy and Corey Seager are currently on the injured list, and Cody Bellinger could be joining them if his left hamstring doesn’t get better over the next couple of days.

Despite the rash of injuries, the Dodgers still lead the National League in runs scored and have plenty of firepower in their lineup. A big reason Los Angeles has been able to navigate through the injuries has been because of the consistent offensive production from Will Smith and Chris Taylor.

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Smith and Taylor provided the offensive spark yet again on Monday, each blasting a homer in the Dodgers’ 3-1 win over the Phillies at Dodger Stadium. Los Angeles has won six of its last seven games.

“Injuries have definitely hurt us this year. It has not been ideal with everyone going down at some point,” Smith said. “But it speaks to the depth we have as a team, as an organization. … We’re still competitive, which is great. As an offense, everybody does their part and we score runs.”

Phillies right-hander Spencer Howard retired the first nine batters he faced and fared well against the Dodgers’ lineup, allowing just two hits over four-plus innings. Fortunately for the Dodgers, both of those hits landed in the outfield bleachers.

Smith got the Dodgers in the hit column in the fourth, launching a two-run homer. It was Smith’s seventh homer of the season, and it helped push his season OPS to .839, which is sixth in the Majors among catchers with at least 140 at-bats. Smith, who was fourth in All-Star fan voting in the balloting update released on Monday, is certainly making a case to represent the NL at Coors Field next month.

Another Dodgers player making a solid All-Star case is Taylor, who added a solo homer in the fifth, his ninth big fly of the season. Taylor, who is sixth in fan voting among outfielders, has been an invaluable piece for the Dodgers all season.

Taylor continues to produce at the plate, posting a .865 OPS, which is second-highest on the team behind Muncy (.947). Taylor has also shown versatility, playing every position except first base, pitcher and catcher. It’s unlikely that Taylor catches the top three in fan voting, but the utility man has earned enough consideration to be added to the All-Star bench.

“I just really hope that the surface line of what he does -- that’s enough to warrant being an All-Star -- but just the value and the versatility and playing above-average [defense] at a handful of spots on the diamond. It’s a no-brainer,” said Dodgers manager Dave Roberts. “I know I’m biased. He’s a Major League All-Star in 2021, no doubt about it.”

While it was Taylor and Smith who provided all the offense, the Dodgers’ bullpen made sure that the two homers would be enough to come out with a win.

After Tony Gonsolin struggled with his command for the second consecutive start, going just 3 2/3 innings, the bullpen combined to toss 5 1/3 scoreless innings. David Price got out of a bases-loaded jam in the fourth to keep the Phillies off the board. Joe Kelly, Victor González, Blake Treinen, Jimmy Nelson and Kenley Jansen followed to shut the door.

“The bullpen won the ballgame for us,” Roberts said. “They just kept putting up zeros and it was really fun to watch. Wasn’t much of a defensive game, as far as making plays, these guys just made pitches.”