NewzLOS ANGELES (AP) — Tarik Skubal tossed six dominant innings in triple-digit heat, Teoscar Hernández, Kyle Tucker and Max Muncy homered, and the Los Angeles Dodgers beat the Atlanta Braves 5-3 in Game 1 of their NL Division Series on Saturday.The game-time temperature of 100 degrees (38 Celsius) fell just short of equaling the Dodger Stadium record of 103 degrees at Game 1 of the 2017 World Series. The feels-like temperature was 105 degrees, with umpires chugging water between innings and fans shielding their heads with giveaway towels on a cloudless day.Skubal was cool, though.The two-time Cy Young Award winner allowed one run and two hits, struck out seven and walked two while starting a postseason game at home for the first time in his career. His previous playoff starts were all on the road for the Detroit Tigers, who traded him to the two-time defending World Series champions just before the Aug.
3 deadline.Skubal's 63 strikeouts are the second-most in a pitcher’s first seven postseason appearances behind Bob Gibson’s 74.Game 2 is Sunday evening at Dodger Stadium, when an extreme heat warning remains in effect.Hernández and Tucker each hit a two-run homer against the Braves' bullpen. Atlanta's rotation got upended during its three-game NL Wild Card Series win over Philadelphia, with the Braves using ace Chris Sale in relief in the deciding game.The Braves managed just four hits. Sean Murphy's two-strike, 421-foot homer leading off the sixth left them trailing 2-1.Ronald Acuña Jr.
singled leading off the ninth against reliever Tanner Scott, who then served up a 432-foot homer to Ozzie Albies, cutting the lead to 5-3. Scott then got two outs before Evan Phillips induced a groundout by Austin Riley with a runner aboard to earn the save.Braves starter Dylan Dodd tossed three scoreless innings and gave up only singles to Shohei Ohtani in the first and Mookie Betts in the third.The Dodgers broke through against Atlanta's bullpen in the fourth. Losing pitcher Victor Mederos walked Freddie Freeman before serving up Hernández's 431-foot shot to left-center, making it 2-0.Still bothered by nagging arm and knee issues, Ohtani batted second behind Betts and lined to second with a runner on to end the third and flied out with a runner on in the fifth.Tucker went deep in the sixth and Muncy added a solo shot off AJ Smith-Shawver two batters later, extending the lead …
LOS ANGELES (AP) — The Los Angeles Dodgers are hosting the Atlanta Braves in what is forecast to be the hottest postseason game at Dodger Stadium since 2017.Shade was at a premium on Saturday for Game 1 of the National League Division Series, which began at 1 p.m. The game-time temperature of 100 degrees was forecast to reach 101 degrees Fahrenheit (38 degrees Celsius), about 20 degrees warmer than the average for early October.The highest game-time temperature ever recorded at Dodger Stadium is 103 degrees (39 degrees Celsius) twice. 24, 2017, for Game 1 of the World Series against Houston.
8, 2024, for a regular-season game against Cleveland.The Braves seemingly were unfazed by the blazing sun, cloudless skies and rising thermometer while taking pre-game batting practice. The two-time defending World Series champion Dodgers? They stayed inside.“Remember, we're from Atlanta,” Braves manager Walt Weiss said before the game.
“It's not that big of a factor.”Braves center fielder Lane Thomas added, "I feel like this is a little cooler 98 than Atlanta.”Some of their fans agreed.“It's hot, but it's not bad,” said Helen Greene of Valdosta, Georgia, who was sitting in the sun nine rows behind the visiting dugout with her long hair arrayed under a Braves cap. “In Atlanta, my hair would have been up by now.”Greene and her husband, Chad, were hydrating with water.“I'll have beer later,” she said, smiling.Tickets for Game 1 were still available early Saturday. The lowest get-in price ranged from $56 to $61, depending on the secondary marketplace.Fans still gathered in the outfield pavilions in hopes of catching a stray ball off the Braves' bats pre-game.
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