7-RUN 1^ST INNING PACES DODGERS ROUT OF BRAVES

2 3-Run Homers Key Big Frame

ATLANTA, Aug. 12 (AP) – The Los Angeles Dodgers scored seven runs in the top of the first inning and went on to pound the Atlanta Braves 14-4 at Turner Field.  Scott Van Slyke and A.J. Ellis both clubbed three-run homers in the opening frame, marking the first time this season a team has hit two-three run shots in the same inning.  The 14-run uprising continued a trend for the Dodgers in August; it was the fourth time in 12 contests that Los Angeles had reached double figures in runs scored this month.  Scoring is up significantly thus far in the National League in August.  The league average thus far this month is 4.6 runs a game compared to 3.9 through the end of July.

The big first inning made for a very short day for Braves starter Mike Minor, who retired Carl Crawford on a ground ball to short to open the game and left the contest before getting a second out.  Minor hit Yasiel Puig with a pitch and yielded a base hit to Matt Kemp, putting runners on first and second, before yielding Van Slyke’s 10^th home run of the year, which gave the Dodgers a 3-0 lead.  Justin Turner singled and Juan Uribe walked, which led to Ellis’ three-run shot over the wall in straight away center field for a 6-0 Los Angeles advantage.  Minor went on to hit Darwin Barney with an 0-2 pitch and then surrendered a base hit to Dodgers starter Dan Haren before Atlanta manager Fredi Gonzalez finally pulled the plug and called David Hale in from the bullpen.  Hale gave up a base hit to Crawford, filling the sacks, and then walked Puig to force in the seventh run of the inning before fanning Kemp and retiring Van Slyke on a ground ball to finally end the inning.  In all, the Dodgers had 10 consecutive batters reach base safely, the second longest such streak in the major leagues this season.  The St. Louis Cardinals had 11 consecutive batters reach base safely as part of an eight-run ninth inning against the Colorado Rockies at Coors Field on June 25.

The Braves managed to get a run back in the bottom of the opening inning on Jason Heyward’s RBI single but the Dodgers regained the seven-run cushion in the top of the second on Barney’s run-scoring base hit and made it 9-1 in the third when Van Slyke singled home Crawford.  Freddie Freeman’s two-run homer off Haren in the third cut the deficit to 9-3 but the Dodgers got the runs back in the top of the fourth on Barney’s second RBI-single of the game and Crawford’s sacrifice fly.

Atlanta never really threatened the inevitable outcome from that point.  Freeman doubled home another run in the sixth to cut the Los Angeles lead to 11-4 but doubles by Puig and Turner made it 12-4 in the seventh and the Dodgers capped the scoring in the eighth courtesy of a run-scoring double off the bat of Crawford and Puig’s run-scoring ground out.

The victory moves the Dodgers seven full games ahead of the San Francisco Giants in the race for the NL West Division title.

8/12/2014, LAN14-Atl14, Turner Field

                       1  2  3  4  5  6  7  8  9     R  H  E   LOB DP

2014 Dodgers           7  1  1  2  0  0  1  2  0    14 19  1    11  0

2014 Braves            1  0  2  0  0  1  0  0  0     4 13  0    12  0

Dodgers              AB  R  H BI   AVG    Braves               AB  R  H BI   AVG

Crawford,C        lf  5  1  3  2  .343    Bonifacio         ss  5  1  2  0  .237

Puig              cf  4  2  1  2  .284    La Stella         2b  4  2  3  0  .241

Kemp              rf  6  1  1  0  .266    Freeman,F         1b  4  1  3  3  .317

Van Slyke         1b  6  1  2  4  .263    Upton,J           lf  4  0  1  0  .239

Turner,Ju         ss  6  2  4  1  .319     Varvaro          p   0  0  0  0  .000

Uribe             3b  4  2  2  0  .360     Walden           p   0  0  0  0  .000

 Rojas            ss  1  0  0  0  .113     Russell          p   0  0  0  0  .000

Ellis,A           c   5  3  2  3  .172     Pena,R           ph  1  0  0  0  .235

Barney            2b  3  2  3  2  .237    Heyward           rf  5  0  3  1  .264

Haren             p   3  0  1  0  .184    Gattis            c   5  0  1  0  .287

 Frias            p   1  0  0  0  .000    Johnson,C         3b  5  0  0  0  .244

 Jansen           p   0  0  0  0  .000    Upton,B           cf  4  0  0  0  .213

                     44 14 19 14          Minor             p   0  0  0  0  .222

                                           Hale             p   1  0  0  0  .077

                                           Doumit           ph  1  0  0  0  .217

                                           Jaime            p   0  0  0  0  .000

                                           Gosselin         ph  2  0  0  0  .071

                                                               41  4 13  4

Dodgers                          INN  H  R ER BB  K PCH STR   ERA

Haren            W 7-9           5.2 11  4  4  1  6 105  75  4.89

Frias            H 1             2.1  1  0  0  0  1  30  22  5.14

Jansen                           1.0  1  0  0  1  2  21  11  1.91

                                 9.0 13  4  4  2  9 156 108

Braves                           INN  H  R ER BB  K PCH STR   ERA

Minor            L 6-4           0.1  5  7  7  1  0  38  23  5.25

Hale                             3.2  8  4  4  1  3  70  45  3.07

Jaime                            2.0  1  0  0  1  5  41  24  3.00

Varvaro                          1.0  2  1  1  0  1  16  14  2.90

Walden                           1.0  2  2  2  1  1  31  16  2.94

Russell                          1.0  1  0  0  0  0  12  10  2.61

                                 9.0 19 14 14  4 10 208 132

LAN: Turner,Ju moved to 3b in the 7th

     Rojas inserted at ss in the 7th

Atl: Doumit batted for Hale in the 4th

     Gosselin batted for Jaime in the 6th

     Bonifacio moved to lf in the 7th

     Gosselin moved to ss in the 7th

     Pena,R batted for Russell in the 9th

E-Van Slyke. 2B-Crawford,C(7), Puig(26), Turner,Ju(18), La Stella(9),

Freeman,F(34). HR-Van Slyke(10), Ellis,A(3), Freeman,F(18).

RBI-Crawford,C 2(39), Puig 2(56), Van Slyke 4(32), Turner,Ju(34),

Ellis,A 3(15), Barney 2(15), Freeman,F 3(69), Heyward(28). SB-Crawford,C(17),

Turner,Ju(4). K-Kemp 4, Van Slyke 2, Turner,Ju, Uribe, Ellis,A, Haren,

Freeman,F, Gattis 2, Johnson,C 4, Upton,B, Hale. BB-Puig, Uribe, Ellis,A,

Barney, La Stella, Freeman,F. SH-Haren. SF-Crawford,C. HBP-Puig, Barney.

PB-Gattis. HB-Minor 2.

GWRBI: Van Slyke

Temperature: 73, Sky: partly cloudy, Wind: left to right at 1 MPH.

Attendance: 36,771

Game Time: 3:21