Field Level Media
Sep 23, 2020
Corey Seager had a home run among his three hits as the Los Angeles Dodgers clinched their eighth consecutive National League West title with a 7-2 victory over the visiting Oakland Athletics on Tuesday.
The Dodgers also clinched the No. 1 seed in the National League heading into the playoffs, which begin next week.
Max Muncy, Chris Taylor and AJ Pollock also hit home runs while rookie right-hander Dustin May was solid over five innings as the Dodgers won for the 13th time in their past 16 home games.
The Dodgers extended their consecutive division title stretch with a little help from the cross-town Los Angeles Angels, who defeated the San Diego Padres. The Dodgers have advanced to the World Series twice in that span but have failed to win a championship.
Robbie Grossman hit a home run for the A's, who clinched the American League West title during their Monday off day when the Houston Astros lost to the Seattle Mariners.
Grossman's home run off the foul pole in the first inning was his sixth of the season and gave the A's the early lead against May. The Dodgers tied it 1-1 in the first when Mookie Betts singled, went to second on a wild pitch by A's starter Frankie Montas and scored on a Seager single. Betts has collected a hit in 19 of his past 20 games.
The A's moved back on top in the third inning when Sean Murphy scored on a May wild pitch, but then the Dodgers' offense took over.
Muncy's home run in the third inning with Seager aboard, his 11th, gave the Dodgers a 3-2 lead. Taylor and Pollock homered two batters apart in the fourth inning to increase the advantage to 5-2. It was Taylor's eighth of the season while Pollock hit his 13th.
Seager's home run, his 14th, came while leading off the fifth inning against left-hander T.J. McFarland. Cody Bellinger added an RBI single in the seventh for a 7-2 advantage.
Montas (3-5) gave up five runs on seven hits over four innings with one walk and three strikeouts. He is 1-4 with a 10.88 ERA over his past six starts.
May (2-1) gave up two runs on three hits with three walks and five strikeouts to earn his first victory since Aug. 4.
--Field Level Media