MLB

Padres Knock Out Kimbrel, Rally Late to Avoid 4-Game Sweep in L.A.

Padres get reprieve from streak of frustration at Dodger Stadium

Four runs in one game is usually not enough to beat the Dodgers. Four runs in four games? You have no chance. It was looking like the Padres had pulled off that feat of futility.

Then Jake Cronenworth hit a screaming line drive off Craig Kimbrel and everything flipped.

San Diego scored four times in the 9th inning against one of the best closers in modern baseball history to win 4-2 and salvage one game at a place they've had all kinds of trouble.

The Padres entered the 9th inning down 1-0 at Dodger Stadium on Sunday. They were on the brink of scoring four total runs in 36 innings and being outscored 5-4 by Justin Turner FOR AN ENTIRE 4-GAME SERIES.

With one out Cronenworth hit a laser right off the middle of Kimbrel's back for a single. The All-Star closer said he was OK. The ensuing results suggest otherwise.

Luke Voit hit a towering drive off the very top of the fence in left field. Another centimeter and it would have been a 2-run homer. Instead it bounced back into play for an RBI double to tie it 1-1. Eric Hosmer followed with an RBI single to put the Friars on top 2-1. A Dodgers trainer then escorted Kimbrel off the field.

He was replaced by Yency Almonte, who proceeded to give up a 2-run home run to Ha-Seong Kim to make it 4-1 Padres. It was the first time in the entire series the Padres scored more than one run in an inning.

Long before that happened, MacKenzie Gore started the game on the mound. Mookie Betts, fresh off the Injured List to heal a cracked rib, led off with a double and scored on a Trea Turner double so the Dodgers had a 1-0 lead after two batters. They didn't score again until it was too late.

Gore gutted his way though 5.2 innings against a very good lineup, an impressive outing for the rookie. Nick Martinez followed Gore and is looking like one of the best relief pitchers in the game. The right-hander allowed just one hit and struck out a pair in 2.1 innings to keep the offense in position to tie it with one swing.

Taylor Rogers allowed one run in the 9th but earned his 23rd save of the season, snapping a 9-game losing streak for the Padres at Dodger Stadium. The Friars come home to start a series against the Mariners on Monday afternoon.

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