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Sports

Dodgers aim to trim magic number, go for sweep of D'backs

By Sports Network
Published | Updated

The Los Angeles Dodgers resume their march toward an NL West title on Wednesday night as they shoot for a three-game sweep of the fading Arizona Diamondbacks.

The Dodgers have lowered their magic number to clinch the division to six after winning the first two games of this set against the second-place Diamondbacks. Arizona is 13 games behind Los Angeles and nine games off the pace for the NL's second wild card.

Scott Van Slyke played the hero on Tuesday, hitting a pinch-hit, two-run homer in the 11th inning to give the Dodgers a 5-3 victory. He ripped a hooking, sinking liner that just got into the front row of seats in left field.

"That was fun, it was good to get the game over. I got a good ball to hit. It was a changeup down and I was lucky to get the barrel on it," Van Slyke said.

Didi Gregorius smacked a two-run homer for Arizona, which has lost three straight and seven of its last 10 overall.

At 72-72, the Diamondbacks are at the .500 mark for the first time since they sat 1-1 on April 2. They have not been below the even mark this year.

"As a team. we're not playing well and our record reflects that," Arizona manager Kirk Gibson said.

The Dodgers have won five in a row over the Diamondbacks to even the season series at seven games apiece and will send Hyun-Jin Ryu to the mound tonight after the left-hander was scratched from his last scheduled start on Friday due to a stiff back.

Ryu threw a 40-pitch bullpen session on Sunday and is 13-5 with a 3.02 earned run average in 26 starts this season.

The Major League rookie won a 9-2 decision over San Diego in his last outing on Aug. 30, hurling 6 1/3 innings of one-run ball.

The 26-year-old is 7-2 with a 2.07 ERA in 13 home starts this year and is 1-0 with a 5.82 ERA in three games versus Arizona.

Patrick Corbin hopes to snap his season-low losing streak at three straight starts tonight for Arizona.

Corbin pitched well enough to win in last Friday's 3-0 setback to San Francisco, but the Giants' Yusmeiro Petit hurled a near perfect game. Corbin allowed all three runs on eight hits and a walk over eight innings.

The 24-year-old southpaw is 2-1 with a 2.49 ERA in his career against the Dodgers.