Dodgers extend winning streak with victory over Twins

Craig Kimbrel came in to pitch the ninth. Tim Beckham grounded to third. Gary Sánchez flied to right. Luiz Arraez doubled to right. Carlos Correa singled off of Kimbrel. First and third, two out. Arraez scored on a wild pitch. Jorge Polanco flied to left.

Final score: Dodgers 8, Twins 5

The Dodgers add some insurance in the seventh. Mookie Betts struck out. Trea Turner doubled off the fence in center. Freddie Freeman flied to left. Joey Gallo, batting for Alberto, homered to left-center. Justin Turner reached first on third baseman Miranda’s throwing error. Gavin Lux grounded to second.

Score after seven: Dodgers 8, Twins 4

The Dodgers took the lead in the sixth. Justin Turner grounded to short. Gavin Lux struck out swinging. Chris Taylor homered to left. Cody Bellinger flied to center.

Score after six: Dodgers 5, Twins 4

The Twins increased their lead in the top of the fifth. Gary Sánchez homered to right-center. Luis Arraez walked. Carlos Correa flied to right. And that’s it for Ryan Pepiot. Alex Vesia is coming in to pitch. Jorge Polanco walked. Max Kepler fouled to third. Jose Miranda reached on an infield single, loading the bases. Gilberto Celestino lined to center to end the threat.

In the bottom half of the inning, Mookie Betts hit a one-out double to right-center. Trea Turner singled to left, scoring Betts. Freddie Freeman fouled to the catcher. Will Smith doubled to right-center, scoring Turner. Left-hander Caleb Thielbar comes in to pitch. Hanser Alberto pinch-hit for Max Muncy and lined to third to end the inning.

Score after five: Dodgers 4, Twins 4

The Twins took the lead in the third. Gary Sánchez walked. Luis Arraez singled, Sánchez to second. Carlos Correa fouled to first. Jorge Polanco homered to center. Max Kepler fouled to short. Jose Miranda, cousin of Lin-Manuel Miranda, popped to second.

The Dodgers got a Freddie Freeman single in the bottom of the third, but that’s it.

Score after three: Twins 3, Dodgers 2

Max Muncy led off the bottom of the second with a home run to right. He is red hot right now. Justin Turner doubled to right-center. Gavin Lux grounded to the pitcher, Turner out trying to advance to third. Lux stole second and took third on the catcher’s throwing error. Chris Taylor walked. Cody Bellinger hit a sacrifice fly, scoring Lux. Mookie Betts lined to third.

Score after two: Dodgers 2, Twins 0

Dustin May in a 2021 game.

(Associated Press)

Dustin May will make one more minor league rehabilitation start for triple-A Oklahoma City on Sunday before returning to the Dodgers’ rotation at home against the Miami Marlins the following weekend (Aug. 19-21), manager Dave Roberts said Wednesday.

May, nearing the end of a grueling 15-month rehabilitation from Tommy John surgery, gave up one run and three hits in five innings, striking out eight and walking one, in his fourth triple-A start Tuesday night.

The hard-throwing right-hander threw 68 pitches, 45 for strikes, and all eight of his whiffs against Red Rock came on swinging strikes. His two-seam sinking fastball averaged 95.9 mph, and his four-seam fastball averaged 97.8 mph. May also threw his curve, cut-fastball and changeup.

“The reports were good,” Roberts said. “Dustin threw the ball well.”

Right-hander Ryan Pepiot was recalled from triple-A Oklahoma City to start Wednesday night’s game against the Minnesota Twins, with the Dodgers looking to extend their win streak to 10 games.

Pepiot, a third-round pick out of Butler in 2019 and one of the organization’s top pitching prospects, has made four big-league starts, going 1-0 with a 2.76 ERA, striking out 19 and walking 12 in 16 1/3 innings.

The stuff was impressive—Pepiot mixed a four-seam fastball that averaged 94.2 mph with a superb 87.0-mph changeup and an 87.1-mph slider—but his command wavered.

“I think the main thing with Ryan is to stay on the plate,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said before the game. “He’s got a good fastball, a slider, and his best out pitch is the changeup. So the main thing is for him to stay on the plate, work efficiently, let the defense stay involved, and it should be a good night.”

Pepiot is 8-0 with a 2.27 ERA in 15 games—13 of them starts—for Oklahoma City this season, striking out 93 and walking 32 in 75 1/3 innings. But minor league hitters aren’t quite as discerning as big-league hitters, who are better at laying off borderline pitches minor leaguers often swing at.

“He has swing-and-miss stuff on all three pitches, and you want him to pound the zone maybe a little more,” said Will Smith, who caught all four of Pepiot’s previous big-league starts and will be behind the plate Tuesday night.

“It’s a big jump from triple-A to the big leagues, especially with these veteran hitters who have their approach, and they’re going to stick to it. That’s just something every young pitcher has to adjust to.”

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