, the sixth Los Angeles pitcher, worked an inning of scoreless relief. Kenley Jansen got his first save.Ketel Marte and Nick Ahmed each had two hits and two RBIs for Arizona. Starting pitcher Luke Weaver homered in his first game with Arizona but allowed five runs and six hits over 4 1/3 innings. Weaver's homer came during a seven-run fourth, in which the Diamondbacks took a 7-4 lead. The right-hander was part of the return from St. Louis in exchange for slugger Paul Goldschmidt.Los Angeles jumped ahead with three runs in the first and one in the third. The Dodgers got their first three batters aboard in the first before Enrique Hernandez had a one-out sacrifice fly and Verdugo hit a two-run double to the gap in right-center.Bellinger extended the lead to 4-0 in the third with a home run to center on a 3-2 fastball by Weaver that he left near the middle of the zone.Walker Buehler allowed one hit over the first three innings before Arizona got to him the second time through the order. The right-hander allowed five runs and five hits in his season debut.Ildemaro Vargas led off the fourth with a double and scored on David Peralta's single to center. Marte's two-run single chased Buehler, and Ahmed's two-run double off Pedro Baez gave Arizona a 5-4 lead. Weaver gave himself some insurance with a two-run homer to left on Baez's fastball.RECORD BOOKThe Dodgers set a franchise record with 42 runs in the four-game series. The previous mark was 37, set May 9-12, 1974 against San Diego.TRAINER'S ROOMDiamondbacks: Pitcher T. J. McFarland is scheduled to throw his next bullpen session Tuesday. The left-hander is on the 10-day injured list due to inflammation in his left shoulder.Dodgers: Shortstop Corey Seager and third baseman Justin Turner were not in the starting lineup. Manager Dave Roberts said he prefers not to sit both on the same day, but Friday's 13-inning game and Sunday being a day game after a night game were what prompted the move. Seager did come on as a pinch-hitter.UP NEXTDiamondbacks: Merrill Kelly will make his major league debut Monday when Arizona opens a three-game series in San Diego. The right-hander, who was selected in the eighth round by Tampa Bay in 2010, has spent the last four seasons with the SK Wyverns in Korea.Dodgers: Left-hander Julio Urias makes his season debut as Los Angeles opens a three-game set with San Francisco on Monday. Urias was limited to four innings of relief in three games last season after missing most of the year due to shoulder surgery.---Follow Joe Reedy at www.twitter.com/joereedy---More MLB: https://apnews.com/MLB and https://twitter.com/-Sports)
Dodgers enjoy early season power; D-backs' reslience tested The narrative following the Los Angeles Dodgers heading into the 2019 season mostly has to do with their consecutive World Series defeats, although there is a subplot for the early season that hangs over their collective head.The Dodgers' dirty little secret while earning back-to-back National League titles is how poorly they have started in each of the last two years. And their early lackluster results go back even further than that.In the first few days of 2019, they have given mixed signals, like their eight home runs in the season opener against the Arizona Diamondbacks, followed by a stretch of one run over 10 innings in the second game that led to a 5-4 defeat in 13 innings. On Saturday, the offense was at it again with four home runs in an 18-5 victory over Arizona.On Sunday afternoon, the Diamondbacks and Dodgers will complete a four-game series in Los Angeles to wrap up the opening weekend of the season for each team.Last May, the Dodgers' return to the World Series seemed improbable. Los Angeles was 16-26 on May 16, with its turnaround credited to the arrival of Max Muncy, who seemed to flip on the power switch for the entire offense.In 2017, the Dodgers were a mediocre 15-14 in early May before rookie Cody Bellinger flashed his power potential and Chris Taylor emerged to lead Los Angeles out of its doldrums and into a 104-win season.Seven Dodgers have already hit home runs this season, making it appear as if they do not want to wait for a power-hitting savior to arrive this time around."A big thing for us is how we get out of the gates," Dodgers second baseman Enrique Hernandez said, according to the Los Angeles Times."All four years I've been here, we haven't gotten off to the greatest of starts in April. So if we can get off to a good start, we know we're a really good team in the summer. If we can start the right way, then I think down the road it's gonna be good for us," Hernandez said.A Diamondbacks team without run producers like Paul Goldschmidt and A. J. Pollock has already learned something about itself in the early going. Arizona brushed off the disaster of Opening Day and a 12-5 defeat to earn a 5-4 victory in 13 innings Friday."I'm so proud of these guys because of the fight they had," Diamondbacks manager Torey Lovullo said after Friday's victory, according to mlb.com. "We got beat pretty bad (Thursday), and they turned the page quickly. We fought all day long to win (Friday's) game." Saturday's blowout defeat leaves the Diamondbacks with something to prove again.Right-hander Luke Weaver (7-11, 4.95 ERA last season), who was acquired from the St. Louis Cardinals in the Goldschmidt trade, will make his Arizona debut Sunday opposite Dodgers' right-hander Walker Buehler (8-5, 2.62 in 2018).Weaver has a 7.71 ERA in two career appearances against the Dodgers, both last season, giving up seven runs (three earned) in one September appearance. Buehler has two career starts against Arizona, both last season, delivering a 2.19 ERA over 12 1/3 innings without a decision.--Field Level Media
Looking for More Picks?
You can browse all the individual handicapper picks below.
Arizona Diamondbacks
Los Angeles Dodgers
Pick Center
MLB
FINAL (3/31/2019)
TKWins
