Los Angeles, CA – Paul Goldschmidt broke a tie game with a two-run homer off Brandon League in the ninth inning, and the Arizona Diamondbacks sent the Los Angeles Dodgers to a sixth straight loss with a 5-3 victory in the middle test of a three-game series.
League (0-2) entered the game in the ninth inning of a 3-3 tie and walked leadoff hitter Gerardo Parra. Two batters later, League and Goldschmidt got into an 11-pitch battle. After five consecutive foul balls, Goldschmidt launched one over the wall in left-center for his seventh home run of the season.
"It's exciting when you have a chance to win the game for your team," Goldschmidt said. "It was a fastball and I knew I hit it well."
J.J. Putz was pulled after walking Nick Punto to start the bottom half, and Heath Bell retired the next three hitters to record his second save of the season.
David Hernandez (2-2) was credited with the win, Arizona's third in four games, after surviving Matt Kemp's leadoff double in the eighth.
Eric Chavez went 2-for-4 with a run scored and an RBI for Arizona, while Punto led Los Angeles' offense with two hits, a home run and two RBI.
"Anything we do doesn't seem to work," Dodgers manager Don Mattingly admitted. "That's the way it is right now."
Both starters remain winless on the season despite quality starts. Arizona's Brandon McCarthy allowed three runs on eight hits in 6 1/3 innings of work, while Josh Beckett was charged with two runs on nine hits over six frames of a no-decision.
Each team scored a run in their first two at-bats. Parra led off the game with a double and eventually scored on Goldschmidt's groundout, and Andre Ethier singled in Kemp in the bottom of the first.
Jason Kubel knocked in Chavez with a base hit to left in the second, and Punto took McCarthy's letter-high payoff pitch over the right-field wall in the home half for the 16th home run of his 13-year career.
Chavez looped a base hit over Dee Gordon and into left field to plate Didi Gregorius with a go-ahead run in the fifth inning, and Punto tied the game again with a run-scoring double in the seventh.
Game Notes
Arizona has won 14 of its last 17 against the Dodgers and goes for the sweep Wednesday with Wade Miley toeing the rubber opposite Clayton Kershaw ... Before the game the Dodgers placed infielder/outfielder Jerry Hairston Jr. on the 15-day disabled list with a left groin strain ... Gregorius went 3-for-4 and is riding a 10-game hitting streak ... Los Angeles is just 5-15 against the NL West this season.
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