Chris Taylor hits three home runs and Dodgers extend NL

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LOS ANGELES – Cornered, desperate and with everything to lose, the Los Angeles Dodgers had it all just the way they like it Thursday with their season on the line.

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Chris Taylor allowed the Los Angeles Dodgers to survive another day, unloading with three home runs and six RBIs, as the Dodgers achieved a decisive 11-2 victory over the Atlanta Braves in Game 5 of the LA Championship Series. National League.

AJ Pollock added two home runs and drove in four, and seven Dodgers pitchers canceled the Braves, who still lead the best-of-seven series 3-2.

The Dodgers are 4-0 in elimination games this postseason and have won seven in a row since 2020.

“For us, it’s always about winning just one game,” Taylor said of the Dodgers’ tendencies. “We have tried to keep that mentality all year and try to do everything we can to win tonight and start from there.”

Taylor became the twelfth player in Major League history to reach deep three times in a playoff game.

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He became the first player to hit three home runs in a postseason game since Enrique Hernandez did it for the Dodgers in Game 5 of the 2017 National League Championship Series against the Chicago Cubs at Wrigley Field. Current Dodger Albert Pujols did it in the 2011 World Series for the St. Louis Cardinals.

“It’s definitely surreal to me,” Taylor said. “I never thought I was going to hit three home runs in a game, much less in a postseason game. It hasn’t really been assimilated yet. “

Taylor, who was 4-of-5, struck out in the eighth in his attempt for a fourth home run.

Freddie Freeman hit a two-run home run for the Braves, who have two more chances to advance to their first World Series since 1999. Game 6 is scheduled for Saturday in Atlanta, which would be the site of Game 7, if necessary. on Sunday.

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The Braves also held a 3-1 lead in the NLCS over the Dodgers last season, but they didn’t get another win. Los Angeles advanced and eventually won the World Series. The Braves have burned in the playoffs 12 times since they last played in the Fall Classic.

“It’s going to be the narrative every day that it’s mentioned, so I don’t think we have a choice (to avoid it) until we kill that narrative,” Freeman said, when asked about the long wait between World Series appearances. of the Braves. . “But we’re up 3-2 and we’re going home. It’s a great position to be in. “

Freeman’s first-inning home run came from Joe Kelly, who was starting a Dodgers bullpen game. Kelly didn’t finish half the inning, leaving after 28 pitches due to a bicep strain, and Los Angeles manager Dave Roberts said the right-hander is out for the remainder of the postseason.

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The Dodgers responded in the second inning, first off a solo home run by Pollock. After a single by Pujols, Taylor gave the Dodgers a 3-2 lead with a home run to leave Braves left-hander Max Fried.

Taylor increased the Dodgers’ lead to 4-2 in the third inning with an RBI single. After Pujols walked in the fifth inning, ending Fried’s night, Taylor went deep again, this time to center field off right-hander Chris Martin.

Fried allowed five runs on eight hits in 4 2/3 innings with two walks and three strikeouts. It was only the second time the Braves lost a Fried starter since early August, with the other coming on September 1 at Dodger Stadium.

“It felt really good, it was a really good, aggressive lineup that did a few shots down the middle,” Fried said. “I wasn’t running around the corners like I normally do, and when you put the balls down the middle, you give them a chance.”

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Taylor’s third home run came in the seventh against left-hander Dylan Lee, becoming the first player to hit three home runs in an elimination game.

Pujols, 41, reached base three times and received two hits. Trea Turner, Cody Bellinger and Pollock each had three hits for Los Angeles.

“AJ hitting that home run early right there gave us some life and then (Taylor) hit that two-run homer in a row with two more home runs,” Roberts said. “You can’t always play for slug, but those guys stepped up.”

Evan Phillips (1-0) pitched 1 1/3 scoreless innings for the win, and Brusdar Graterol and Blake Treinen each pitched two scoreless innings for Los Angeles.