Dodgers roar back with four homers in eighth inning to beat Padres

The Dodgers’ pursuit of a ninth straight National League West title appeared to have effectively ended shortly after 9:30 p.m. Wednesday.

While Brusdar Graterol imploded on the mound against the dispirited San Diego Padres in the seventh inning at Dodger Stadium, the San Francisco Giants applied the finishing touches on a 1-0 win over the Arizona Diamondbacks up north.

Graterol faced four batters, surrendered three runs and didn’t record an out before he was yanked to boos. The Dodgers, at that point, trailed by four runs. Fans streamed for the exits. A loss and they would fall to three games behind the first-place Giants with four games left in the regular season — all but sealing their spot in Wednesday’s NL wild-card game against the St. Louis Cardinals.

But the Dodgers didn’t lose Wednesday. They mashed their way back, one booming swat at a time, leaving Dodger Stadium shaking with a thunderous 11-9 comeback victory.

The unlikely rally began with Mookie Betts breathing some life back into his team, launching a solo home run off Daniel Hudson in the seventh inning to trim the deficit to three.

Max Muncy and AJ Pollock then began the bottom of the eighth inning with back-to-back homers. Two batters later, Cody Bellinger, playing with fractured ribs during his historically dismal season, smashed his first home run since Aug. 11 in his second plate appearance since coming off the injured list Tuesday to tie the score at 9-9.

Corey Seager completed the eighth inning slugfest with a go-ahead line-drive two-run home run over the right-field wall. The shortstop sprinted around the bases in excitement, topping off the Dodgers’ first inning with four home runs since Sept. 5, 2016. Dodger Stadium, silent minutes earlier, was deafening.

“We were just trying to take care of our own business,” Seager said. “That’s a huge morale win for us. We’re still trying to accomplish a goal. We’re still fighting for that and showing that grit and that drive and that will. To come back and win that game is huge for us moving forward.”

Bellinger was only in the game because Gavin Lux, a middle infielder tasked to make a difficult midseason transition to the outfield, exited in the sixth inning after crashing into the wall in center field at full speed attempting to make a catch. The former top prospect walked off the field holding his right shoulder.

Lux has been used exclusively as an outfielder since being recalled from the minor leagues Sept. 10 despite his inexperience because the Dodgers (102-56) have wanted his bat in the lineup. Lux, who has started his last six games in center field, is batting .367 in 15 games since rejoining the team.

Dodgers pitcher Max Scherzer follows through as he delivers a pitch against the San Diego Padres in the second inning at Dodger Stadium Wednesday.

(Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)

The Dodgers appeared en route to an easy win after spotting Max Scherzer a four-run lead against left-hander Ryan Weathers after the first inning. But Scherzer was knocked around for the second straight start.

After yielding five runs in five innings to the Colorado Rockies last week, Scherzer gave up six runs (five earned) across 51/3 innings to fumble the lead. The right-hander didn’t issue a walk but had only four strikeouts — his lowest total this season excluding when he exited a game in June in the first inning because of injury.

The Dodgers weren’t supposed to need Scherzer for the final stretch. He was acquired only after Trevor Bauer was accused of sexual assault and put on paid administrative leave July 2 for — at the time — an unknown period. The leave proved to be for the rest of the season. Scherzer was added out of desperation to mask the franchise’s failure to adequately vet a player they committed to pay more than $100 million over three seasons.

The repair work, plus All-Star Trea Turner, cost the Dodgers four minor leaguers, including two of their top prospects — Keibert Ruiz and Josiah Gray — at the July 30 trade deadline. Scherzer’s time in Los Angeles could be over when the season ends as he is a free agent this winter, though Turner has another season under team control. It was a hefty price for a World Series push. But the move has paid astounding dividends despite Scherzer’s recent results.

Turner entered Wednesday on pace to become the Dodgers’ first batting champion since Tommy Davis in 1962 and 1963. He went one for five Wednesday to dropping his batting avergage one point to .324 — six points ahead of former Nationals teammate Juan Soto for tops in the National League.

“He text me a little while ago,” Turner said Tuesday. “He told me he was coming for me.”

Scherzer was, for his first nine starts as a Dodger, the best pitcher in the major leagues. He went 38 innings over seven without surrendering an earned run. But his last two outings have been forgettable.

He exited in the sixth inning moments after Lux limped off in pain. Bellinger emerged to take Lux’s place, stoking cheers from the crowd still behind the 2019 NL MVP despite his nightmare season. They would soon grow louder once the Dodgers’ division chase was suddenly back on again with a flurry of blasts.

“That was a crazy inning,” Bellinger said. “Maybe the craziest I’ve been a part of.”