Dodgers battle back but fall in 12th to D-backs

Dodgers battle back but fall in 12th to D-backs

May 9th, 2018

LOS ANGELES -- Back from Mexico, the Dodgers found not much had changed. They still can't handle the D-backs.
They went down with a fight, battling back from a three-run deficit to send the game into extra innings on a clutch homer in the ninth, only to lose in the 12th, 8-5, on 's three-run homer off .
Arizona is 8-3 against the Dodgers, who at nine games behind in the division have matched their largest deficit of the year. They are 15-20 and were 20-15 at this point last year.
"Games that we found ways to win last year and for the first five weeks of the season we haven't," said Dodgers manager Dave Roberts. "I just don't have an answer for that. The last couple of years, we've won these games. We've got to find a way to figure that out."
Rich Hill came off the disabled list to make the start for the Dodgers and allowed three homers in four innings, including the obligatory one to A.J. Pollock, his seventh against the Dodgers in 11 games this year. Hill said his finger was fine.
"This loss falls on me," said Hill. "It's really disappointing and frustrating. To pitch the way I did is unacceptable. The fastballs to righties, in certain counts, starting to leak back over the plate, one of the things I'm seeing that is a theme for the balls leaving the yard."
Down by three runs, though, the Dodgers rallied on 's home run and two RBIs, three hits and an RBI from Matt Kemp and a dramatic home run by Hernandez with one out in the bottom of the ninth off closer Brad Boxberger to send the game into extras.

Between Hill and Garcia, the Dodgers' bullpen pitched seven scoreless innings, including two from . Starting pitchers and were used as a pinch-runner and a pinch-bunter, respectively. The Dodgers used 22 players, Arizona used 21 and combined the teams used 17 pitchers.
The Dodgers had every chance to win it in the bottom of the 10th, loading the bases on a pair of walks and a hustle infield single by , but and struck out. They had runners on second and third with two out in the 11th, but Bellinger lined out.
The Dodgers went 3-for-14 with runners in scoring position, stranding 11.
"I think guys are trying to do too much," said Roberts. "We don't stay in the strike zone with runners in scoring position, and it's been all year and teams understand that. Until we can stay in that strike zone, it's going to be tough."
With one out in the 12th, Alex Avila singled and walked and with two out, Descalso slugged a 1-2 fastball clocked at 96.1 mph from Garcia into the right-field pavilion. Three of Descalso's four homers this year are against the Dodgers.
MOMENT THAT MATTERED
Hernandez heroics: Hernandez was on the bench for the first eight innings Tuesday night, but his first at-bat kept the game going, as he homered dramatically with one out in the bottom of the ninth to tie the game. In the 11th, he led off with a walk and made it around to third base, but the Dodgers couldn't drive him in.
"Kiké comes up big in big moments," Roberts said.
SOUND SMART
Matt Kemp went 3-for-5 with a homer. He's batting .353. With three plate appearances on Wednesday, he will qualify for the Top 10 in batting.
"Matt's done everything we could have asked," Roberts said. "If you look at offense, he's certainly at the top of the list for bright spots."

HE SAID IT
"I saw it briefly and he slid well past the bag. I know Souza plays hard, but I thought that was excessive for me." -- Roberts, on Steven Souza Jr.'s hard slide into third baseman , which resulted in words being exchanged between Dodgers in the dugout and Souza

UP NEXT
In his eighth start of the season, Alex Wood seeks his first victory in Wednesday night's 7:10 p.m. PT game against and the D-backs. After eight starts last year, Wood was 6-0 (one win in relief) en route to his first All-Star selection.