Kiké Hernández hit a go-ahead two-run double in the ninth inning, and the Los Angeles Dodgers extended their dominance over the Seattle Mariners with a 5-3 victory on Saturday night at T-Mobile Park. The win gave Los Angeles its 11th straight victory against Seattle and kept the Dodgers’ late-season momentum intact.
Sportsbooks listed the Dodgers as -130 favorites on the moneyline, while the Mariners were slight +110 underdogs. The over/under was set at eight runs, and the teams combined for exactly that total.
Seattle closer Andrés Muñoz entered in the ninth with the score tied but struggled with command. He issued back-to-back walks to Michael Conforto and Alex Call before Miguel Rojas advanced the runners with a groundout. Hernández then stepped in and lined a breaking ball down the left-field line, bringing in both runs and energizing the sizable crowd of Dodgers supporters. Muñoz dropped to 3-3 with the loss.
Edgardo Henriquez recorded the final three outs for Los Angeles to earn his first save of the season, completing a stretch in which Dodgers pitchers struck out the final nine Seattle batters in order. Alex Vesia was credited with the win after a clean eighth inning, improving his record to 4-2.
The Dodgers opened the scoring in the fifth inning when rookie catcher Dalton Rushing drilled a two-run home run to right field off Seattle starter Logan Gilbert. The Mariners quickly answered in the bottom half of the inning, as Jorge Polanco launched a three-run homer off left-hander Andrew Heaney to give Seattle a 3-2 lead.
Los Angeles tied the game in the seventh inning without the benefit of a hit, driving in the run. Conforto led off with a single and advanced to third when Hernández followed with a base hit. Reliever Logan Evans threw a pitch that skipped past catcher Harry Ford, allowing Conforto to score and knot the game at 3-3.
From there, the Dodgers’ bullpen held firm, setting the stage for Hernández’s decisive swing in the ninth. The Dodgers finished the game with 15 strikeouts from their pitching staff, including nine straight to close the contest.
Gilbert delivered five innings of solid work for Seattle, striking out six while giving up two runs on four hits. Polanco’s home run provided the Mariners’ only runs of the night, and the team managed just three hits after the sixth inning.
The loss extended Seattle’s drought against Los Angeles, with the Mariners’ last victory over the Dodgers coming on April 19, 2021, at T-Mobile Park. The defeat also dropped Seattle further behind in its push to secure momentum heading into the postseason, while Los Angeles notched its fifth consecutive win.
The series concludes Sunday with a marquee pitching matchup. Dodgers left-hander Clayton Kershaw (10-2, 3.52 ERA) is scheduled to make the final regular-season start of his career, while the Mariners will counter with right-hander Bryce Miller (4-5, 5.53 ERA).