It took the Dodgers four pitches Wednesday to match the National League record for home runs in a season. Joc Pederson’s leadoff blast in the Dodgers’ 7-3 win over the Colorado Rockies at Dodger Stadium was home run No. 249. Three innings later, Pederson’s two-run shot gave the Dodgers the record.
Pederson was a fitting record obliterator, a boom-or-bust slugger who has come to epitomize the era baseball has drifted into. And it’s been plenty of boom for Pederson lately. His home run in the fourth inning was his fifth in seven plate appearances since Sunday. He walked in one of the other plate appearances. He missed a home run by inches in the other, settling for a double. A strikeout in the sixth inning stopped his tear.
“He’s an impact player,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said, “and today his offense really carried us.”
Pederson’s power display Wednesday — in his first game since exiting Monday’s win after crashing into the outfield wall to make a catch — helped supply enough run support for the teetering Hyun-Jin Ryu, whose alarming slide continued. The left-hander allowed three runs and six hits over a season-low 4 1/3 innings. He issued a season-high four walks. Chris Taylor’s diving catch to end the fourth inning to rob Josh Fuentes of extra bases with runners at the corners saved Ryu from further damage.
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