This was a hard fought battle. The Dodgers came screaming out of the gate by scoring 4 big runs in the 1st inning on a 2 run double by Loney and a 2 run homerun by Russell Martin. Unfortunately, an initially hittable Paul Byrd righted his ship. Byrd finished the game by pitching 7 strong innings. For the remainder of the game the Dodgers would scatter just 5 more hits and would score no more runs. They could only get a man to thirdbase twice the last 7 times up to bat.
With Chad Billingsley on the mound the whole stadium was hoping that he could hold on. Would the abusive Summer heat drain all of his energy? Can the Dodgers pull this out? His curve ball wasn't sharp so the Indians batters starting sitting on the fastball. Chad gave up 8 hits. He lasted only 5 innings, but would give up only 3 runs. Can the one run lead hold up?
The relief corps had to bear down. Averting a sweep was a must and we all knew they would be the key. They battled and clawed through the suppressive heat to pitch 4 scoreless innings. Kou, Beimel, Broxton and Saito closed the doors. Only one hit was given up between the 4 of them. They showed us what this team can accomplish. If only the team can show a little bit of consistency. Nevertheless, this was a well earned victory. Dodgers 4, Indians 3.
Watch highlights below.
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