Dodgers show their October grit in comeback win over Giants

LOS ANGELES – The scoreboard said 4-0 before most fans at Dodger Stadium had even found their seats. The 53,251 who did on Saturday night might have thought they were in for a long, painful evening. Instead, they witnessed a familiar sight — the Dodgers showing exactly why they're October favorites again.

Down four runs after a disastrous 43-pitch first inning from Tyler Glasnow, the Dodgers stormed back with seven unanswered runs to beat the rival San Francisco Giants, 7-5, and inch closer to winning the NL West.

The win — the Dodgers' fourth straight and 10th in their last 13 — pushes their record to 88-67, and lowers their magic number to clinch the division to just three with seven games remaining.

Glasnow, who has been a rock in the rotation all year, looked anything but early. The first five Giants nearly ran him off the mound — four reached base, capped by a bases-clearing double from Bryce Eldridge. Then came a bases-loaded walk, and just like that, it was 4-0 Giants. Glasnow walked three in the inning and looked rattled.

“That game could've ended a lot differently for me, and I’m glad I could go back out,” Glasnow said.

But the veteran right-hander settled in admirably, ultimately giving the Dodgers five full innings. He allowed no more runs after that ugly first, finishing with a final line of 5 IP, 6 H, 4 ER, 4 BB, and 7 K. His ERA ticked up to 3.30 — but his ability to regroup kept the Dodgers within striking distance.

And the comeback was quick.

Max Muncy, who seems to save his best for the Giants, blasted his 209th home run in Dodger blue — a two-run shot that cut the lead in half in the bottom of the first. He’s now just two behind Steve Garvey for sixth on the franchise’s all-time list. Muncy now has 19 home runs this season.

Michael Conforto’s solo homer in the fourth brought it to 4-3, as Conforto raised his batting average to .203 after an impressive three-hit game. He went 3-for-4 with a home run—his 12th of the season—and two singles. Conforto mentioned that he had some “honest conversations” with Roberts about the importance of simply playing the game, rather than fixating on his swing.

"Being able to go to left-center is a good sign," Conforto said. "Being able to stay on a changeup out over the plate and hit a line drive to left, that's definitely a good sign."

Roberts noted that Conforto is “showing a lot of life right now.” He added that since their conversation, Conforto has displayed increased confidence and competitiveness.

"It starts with honest conversations with Doc," Conforto said. "It came to a point where he was very honest with me and said, 'I need to see something from you.' Not just going out there getting a hit a day. He needed to see some fight, he needed to see something he can trust."

Conforto acknowledged that he had his first conversation with Roberts during the Angels series in Anaheim back in early August and realized that he needed to take another step forward in order to remain in the lineup moving forward.

"I think it was a bit of a wake-up call," Conforto said. "Definitely have to give credit to Doc for just being really honest with me and kinda get me going."

The rally continued when Shohei Ohtani and Mookie Betts drew two-out walks. Freddie Freeman — hitting a ridiculous .328 with runners in scoring position — punched a game-tying single through the right side.

By the time Tommy Edman, just back from the IL and previously 5-for-26, clanged a solo shot off the left-field foul pole in the fifth, the Dodgers had their first lead.

Then came Shohei Ohtani.

Ohtani crushed his 53rd home run of the season in the sixth inning — tying Kyle Schwarber atop the National League leaderboard — and in the process, set a Dodger Stadium single-season home run record with 29, breaking his own mark from earlier in the week. The MVP chants were loud — and justified.

Ohtani scored his 140th run of the season with Freeman's RBI single. He is the third player in the last 20 years to score at least 140 runs in a season, joining Ronald Acuña Jr. (149 runs in 2023) and Alex Rodriguez (143 runs in 2007).

While Glasnow’s bounce back was key, the Dodgers’ bullpen sealed it.

Anthony Banda breezed through the sixth, but things nearly unraveled again in the seventh. Kirby Yates gave up a homer to Rafael Devers, then walked two more. It was the latest rough outing for Yates, whose postseason role is now very much in question. Enter Justin Wrobleski, pitching on back-to-back days. The rookie cleaned up the mess and stranded the tying run on base.

Then came Will Klein — just up from Triple-A — who electrified the crowd by striking out the side in the eighth. It was just his 10th major league appearance this season. No moment looked too big. Finally, Jack Dryer, who has quietly earned manager Dave Roberts’ trust, secured his fourth save of the season with a scoreless ninth.

It wasn’t pretty early, but the Dodgers showed the kind of resilience that makes them so dangerous in October. They're now just three wins away from celebrating another division crown.

They’ll go for the four-game sweep Sunday afternoon with Emmet Sheehan (6-3, 3.17 ERA) on the mound. The Giants, who’ve now lost seven out of eight, will counter with Trevor McDonald (0-0, 9.00 ERA), looking to stop the bleeding.

With the division in sight and the postseason looming, the Dodgers just keep proving they know how to win — even when the odds are stacked early.