LOS ANGELES — It was a different kind of flex alert.
With the epic heat wave baking California making baseballs fly, the San Francisco Giants muscled up and hit five home runs, four in a two-inning span off of homer-prone left-hander Andrew Heaney, and beat the Dodgers, 7-4, on Monday night.
Earlier in the day, the second-place San Diego Padres were shut out by the Arizona Diamondbacks, shaving the Dodgers’ magic number to clinch another NL West title down to eight. It didn’t go any lower Monday.
“That was accurate,” Freddie Freeman said of the scouting report – and science – that says Dodger Stadium becomes much more hitter-friendly in the heat. “A couple of them would have been homers no matter what. But I’m not used to the 100s and the 101s (exit velocity) at 35 (launch angle) going out. We could have done the same, but they had a really good sinkerballer on the mound (Logan Webb). They had the homer balls going today.”
Three of the Giants’ five home runs fit Freeman’s description – hit at 101 mph with launch angles between 31 and 37 degrees. But Heaney was not blaming global warming for his troubles.
“I was throwing (stuff) right down the middle,” he said. “I didn’t do a good job of mixing pitches very well. I didn’t put guys away. Made mistakes. They capitalized.”
Heaney has often had a home run problem during his career. He has allowed 1.6 for every nine innings he has pitched as a major-leaguer fueled by the occasional long-ball bender like the 10 he gave up in his first 28 innings after being traded to the New York Yankees last summer, dooming his time in New York.
He seemed to be in remission as a Dodger. He gave up just one home run in 31 innings over his first seven starts.
But he has regressed over his past four starts, allowing 10 home runs in 21 innings, including multiple homers in three of those four starts.
“When you’re a two-pitch pitcher – there were some changeups in there, but (Heaney is) predominantly a fastball pitcher,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said of Heaney, who threw 55 fastballs, 27 sliders and eight changeups against the Giants. “He made some mistakes in the middle of the plate and they took advantage.
“I think the main adjustment with these homers is that he’s making mistakes in the middle of the plate, heart of the plate. I think there’s some sequencing thing that we can kind of clean up going forward.”
The Giants got Heaney twice each in the third and fourth innings. In the third, Lewis Brinson hammered an 0-and-1 fastball into the netting beyond center field for a two-run homer. Two batters later, JD Davis sent a 1-and-1 fastball over the wall in center field.
Thairo Estrada changed things up, leading off the fourth inning by hitting a changeup from Heaney over the wall. Three batters later, David Villar sent a first-pitch fastball into the right field pavilion for a two-run homer, the Giants’ fourth home run in an eight-batter stretch.
“Trying to throw some of those heaters up, they just ended up middle,” Heaney said. “Tried to flip a changeup in there (to Estrada). It stayed up.
“I’m frustrated any time somebody barrels a ball up. Especially when it goes out. Especially when we had a 2-0 lead. Squandered that. Lost the game. Not happy about that.”
In between the long balls, Heaney was difficult to hit. He gave up just two hits that didn’t go over a wall, struck out eight and got 19 swings-and-misses in 5⅓ innings.
Brinson doubled up, hitting his second home run of the game in the ninth inning off of Dodgers reliever Justin Bruihl.
The Dodgers started the power surge with a two-run homer by Freeman in the first inning. It was Freeman’s first homer since Aug. 15, ending a stretch of 87 homer-less plate appearances.
“It’s one of those things,” Freeman said of his 17 home runs, putting him on track for his fewest in a full season since 2015 when a wrist injury limited him to 118 games. “I’m going to worry about it. If I start chasing homers, I’m going to start chasing everything. Just trying to be a good hitter and keep that going.”
The Dodgers found it more difficult to score against Webb with the ball in play.
Trea Turner’s single with two outs in the third inning started a stretch that saw six out of nine Dodgers batters get hits. But only one run scored – on an RBI double by Joey Gallo in the fourth.
A failed stolen base attempt ended the third when Turner beat the throw but slid off the base. In the fourth, third base coach Dino Ebel stopped Max Muncy at third on Gallo’s double. He stayed at third as Miguel Vargas popped out to shallow right field and Cody Bellinger took a questionable called third strike.
In the fifth, Ebel made the opposite choice – and it was the wrong one.
Austin Barnes led off the inning with a single. Betts followed with a double into the left-field corner. Estrada was slow to field it and Ebel sent Barnes – trying to score him all the way from first base with no outs and Turner and Freeman coming up. Barnes was an easy out, Ebel tapping his chest in a “My bad” gesture as he returned to the third base coaching box.
“I know Dino is going to wear this one,” Roberts said, declining to criticize Ebel for sending Barnes. “But I’m not going to waver in my confidence. It’s one of those positions on the field where when you do things well no one talks about it. But if it doesn’t go well then you’re the center of attention. I just don’t operate that way. He’s as good as there is, for me.”
Barnes did eventually get his run on a solo homer in the seventh inning, one of seven home runs hit in the game.
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