ATLANTA — The Los Angeles Dodgers went from playing in a nail-biter to hammering the Atlanta Braves bullpen for a blowout victory.
Mookie Betts had a tiebreaking RBI single with two outs in a seven-run ninth inning for the Dodgers, who beat the Braves 9-2 on Sunday night after back-to-back losses by Los Angeles to start the four-game series at Truist Park.
The defeat for the Braves dropped them into a tie with the New York Mets for the third and final wild-card spot in the National League playoff race with 13 games to go in the regular season. At 81-68, they’re tied for second in the NL East, nine games behind the division-leading Philadelphia Phillies (90-59).
Atlanta is the six-time reigning champion in the NL East. The Phillies haven’t won the division since 2011.
The Dodgers are first in the NL West at 88-61, 3 1/2 games ahead of the second-place San Diego Padres, with Los Angeles seeking its third straight division title and 11th in a 12-year stretch. The Padres are in the top wild-card slot, with the NL West’s Arizona Diamondbacks second in those standings and two games ahead of Atlanta and New York.
Los Angeles holds a two-game lead on the NL Central’s Milwaukee Brewers in the push for the NL’s No. 2 seed and a first-round bye in the playoffs. The Dodgers had lost six of their past nine games entering Sunday.
“I don’t want to say it was the biggest win of the year, but it felt big considering what we’ve been going through,” manager Dave Roberts said.
Dodgers designated hitter Shohei Ohtani was 2-for-4 with two doubles, an RBI and a run scored, but he did not homer or steal a base in his pursuit of Major League Baseball’s first 50-50 season. He has 47 home runs and 48 stolen bases.
Teoscar Hernández, Tommy Edman and Max Muncy hit consecutive home runs during the ninth-inning outburst, which started against Braves closer Raisel Iglesias (5-2). He had not allowed an earned run in 35 1/3 innings entering the game, but the 34-year-old right-hander was charged with the first five runs of the inning — which all came with two outs.
The Braves decided to intentionally walk Ohtani with two outs in the ninth, a runner on third and the score tied, leaving the game in Betts’ hands.
“I wouldn’t pitch to him, either,” said Betts, an eight-time MLB All-Star. “Fortunately, I was able to come through.”
Roberts said there are probably two players he would walk in order to face Betts.
“One plays in New York,” he said, referring to Yankees slugger Aaron Judge. “And the other is in our clubhouse.”
Freddie Freeman, who played with the Braves from 2010-21 before signing with the Dodgers, followed Betts’ go-ahead hit with a two-run single before the home runs.
Dodgers reliever Michael Kopech (6-8) earned the win after escaping a two-on, no-out jam in the eighth inning by getting Travis d’Arnaud to fly out and striking out Orlando Arcia and Jarred Kelenic.
Brusdar Graterol retired the Braves on nine pitches in the ninth with a strikeout, groundout and lineout.
Ohtani made it 2-all in the seventh with a two-out RBI double to right field, but Betts flew out to center field to end the threat.
Ohtani had also doubled home a run for the Dodgers in the fifth to cut the Braves’ lead to 2-1. With two outs, he lined a pitch to right field that scored Muncy. It was Ohtani’s first hit in eight at-bats in the series.
Braves starter Charlie Morton went six innings on the mound, surrendering one run on three hits and two walks. The 40-year-old right-hander struck out six batters.
Matt Olson and d’Arnaud picked up the RBIs for the Braves in the third inning.
Dodgers starter Walker Buehler lasted six innings despite having thrown 70 pitches after three. He struck out five batters and gave up two runs (one earned), three hits and five walks.
“The third time through (the lineup) in the last three innings, I got a couple first-pitch outs and early outs and some three-pitch punchouts,” Buehler said. “I kind of got rolling and felt good about it.”
The series is set to conclude Monday night, with the scheduled starting pitchers Los Angeles right-hander Yoshinobu Yamamoto (6-2, 2.88 ERA) and Atlanta left-hander Max Fried (9-9, 3.46).