The Dodgers extend their winning streak to eight games thanks to Miguel Rojas’ second home run of the season.
Julio Uras had his back to the wall early in the first inning of his Aug. 3 start against the Oakland A’s. With one out, a single and a walk placed runners on first and second. Shortstop Miguel Rojas came out to the mound and informed Uras that he didn’t have to strike out everyone; his defense was there to assist.
Uras then induced a double-play groundout with two pitches. The inning had come to an end.
On Sunday, Uras found himself in a similar situation against the Colorado Rockies. Alan Trejo’s two-run home drive in the fourth inning knotted the game. As he moved back to the dugout, Uras roared in rage not once, but twice.
.
.
.
.
.
Again, Rojas picked up his teammate with his bat rather than his words. In the fourth inning, the light-hitting shortstop smashed a single home run over the fence in left-center field, followed by a sacrifice fly with the bases loaded. The Dodgers won 8-3, completing a four-game sweep of the Colorado Rockies and extended their winning streak to eight games.
“We’ve been playing really well as a team,” Rojas added. “A selfless approach to the plate.” A lot of guys get on base in various ways: base hits, walks, and everyone is battling for the opportunity and the rally. That’s how I was able to complete four runs today. “I had personnel on base.”
The Dodgers have the longest active winning streak in MLB (71-46). They lead the National League West by 8 12 games over the second-place San Francisco Giants.
Uras returned to the mound after Rojas’ second home run of the season gave the Dodgers a 4-3 lead, and proceeded to strike out everyone. In the fifth and sixth innings, the left-hander struck out the side. In the seventh inning, he struck out two of three batters to finish his 88-pitch outing.
Uras (10-6) struck out a career-high 12 batters. The left-hander gave up four hits and did not walk anyone. His seven strikeouts in a row were two short of a franchise record.
“When they gave me a lead, I was just able to go out there and maintain it, not allowing them to score any more runs,” Uras explained in Spanish.
This season, Uras is 7-1 at Dodger Stadium and 3-5 on the road with a 6.80 ERA.
Despite only having one hit, Rojas drove in half of the Dodgers’ runs, a 388-foot rocket off Rockies left-hander Kyle Freeland (4-13) that crept over the left-center field fence.
Following Rojas’ sacrifice fly in the sixth inning, Mookie Betts (2 for 5) followed with a two-run double to put the game out of reach.
Every Dodgers starter reached base, and the team totaled ten hits.
The Dodgers took the lead in the second inning when Amed Rosario (2 for 3) doubled and scored on an RBI single by Max Muncy.
Muncy eventually scored on an unusual sequence: Rockies second baseman Brendan Rogers camped behind the bag on a pop ball, but let it hit the grass for an automatic out under the infield fly rule. Allowing the ball to drop allowed Muncy to tag up and score from third base, giving the Dodgers a 2-0 lead.
Kiké Hernandez hit a deep fly ball to the warning track in left field, where Jurickson Profar caught it before slamming into the fence. Profar was forced to depart the game due to a twisted left knee.
Trejo knotted the game 3-3 with one swing in the fourth inning after the two sides traded scores in the third. Uras’ 0-and-1 changeup was snagged down the center of the plate by him. Trejo, a Downey native and Uras’ teammate in the World Baseball Classic with Team Mexico, hit his second home run of the season.
“I regained focus after that hit and did a good job attacking hitters,” Uras said, referring to Trejo’s homer.
In relief of Uras, Alex Vesia and Victor Gonzalez both pitched a scoreless inning. Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said Uras might have gone out for the eighth inning on merit, but he is becoming more conscious of preserving pitchers’ innings with the postseason in mind.
Only the Atlanta Braves and the Baltimore Orioles have better records than the Dodgers in the National League and the American League, respectively. They’re a long way from counting magic numbers, but games this week against two postseason clubs (Milwaukee and Miami) will put the Dodgers’ magic to the test.
“I’m certain we won’t lose that edge, that urgency, going into this postseason,” Roberts said.