LOS ANGELES — Tarik Skubal spent five and a half innings dodging traffic, the Dodgers spent the whole night stranding runners, and none of it mattered once Teoscar Hernández stepped up in the ninth. St. Louis grabbed the lead early and held on into the ninth before Hernández ripped a two-run double to center, sending the Dodgers to a walk-off 3-2 win and a series victory at Dodger Stadium.
Cardinals Strike First, Dodgers Answer Late
St. Louis wasted no time. José Fermín and Iván Herrera opened the game with back-to-back singles, and Joshua Báez cashed one in to make it 1-0 before the Dodgers even came to bat. Two innings later the Cardinals tacked on again, stringing together three straight singles capped by Ramón Urías driving home Herrera to push it to 2-0. It was a clean, quiet kind of pressure, the type of start that can bury a team that isn’t paying attention.
The Dodgers weren’t blowing the doors off in response, but they chipped. Tommy Edman doubled to open the fifth and eventually scored on a wild pitch, cutting the deficit to 2-1 and giving the lineup something to build on heading into the back half of the game.
Skubal Digs In, the Offense Keeps Missing
Skubal’s final line, 10 hits allowed over 5.2 innings, looks rough on paper, but it undersells how many jams he pitched out of. St. Louis put runners on in almost every inning against him and only cashed in twice, with Skubal working around traffic in the third, fourth and sixth before handing it to the bullpen. Edgardo Henriquez, Evan Phillips and Alex Vesia combined to keep the door shut from there, holding St. Louis scoreless the rest of the way.
The bigger story was what the Dodgers couldn’t do with their own chances. Will Smith walked with two on in the third. Kyle Tucker and Max Muncy both reached in the eighth to load the bases with two outs, only for Dalton Rushing to strike out on a foul tip and end it. Inning after inning, Los Angeles put pressure on St. Louis and came away with nothing to show for it, the kind of pattern that turns a winnable game into a stressful one.
Edman Has a Night, but It’s Not Enough to Beat the Dodgers
Give credit where it’s due. Tommy Edman was brilliant for the wrong team, finishing the night 4 for 5 with a double and a stolen base, the best individual performance on either side. He set the tone in the top of the first, kept the line moving all night, and did everything a leadoff hitter could ask short of actually winning the game. It just wasn’t enough to hold off what was building in the Dodgers’ dugout.
Teoscar Ends It in the Ninth
With the Cardinals bullpen clinging to a 2-1 lead into the ninth, Riley O’Brien came on and immediately lost the plot. Alex Freeland lined out to open the inning, but Edman, yes, that Edman, singled for his fourth hit of the night before the Dodgers even had a chance to use him. Mookie Betts drew a walk, and Teoscar Hernández stepped in and lined a double to center that scored both runners and ended it before O’Brien could record a second out. Dodger Stadium erupted. The Cardinals bullpen, which had been nearly perfect for five straight innings, fell apart in one swing.
Up Next
The Nationals roll into Dodger Stadium for a new series opener Thursday, with Blake Snell taking the mound for Los Angeles against Jackson Kent for Washington. First pitch is set for 7:10 p.m. PST as the Dodgers try to carry the walk-off momentum into a fresh matchup.