Rivalry gone wild: Chaotic first inning features fireworks from both clubs

PHOENIX -- The Dodgers and D-backs knew this weekend’s four-game tilt at Chase Field would set the tone for the NL West race down the stretch.

Even before the Dodgers used an edge-of-your-seat ninth inning to come away with an 8-6 victory over the D-backs on Saturday night, it was crystal clear that the tone is: Buckle up, and don’t blink.

On the heels of a grueling 10-9 battle that went to the Dodgers in Friday’s opener, this one started with perhaps the most exciting first inning in MLB this season.

This tale starts with, of course, NL MVP front-runner Shohei Ohtani, who lit the fuse with a towering leadoff homer off D-backs right-hander Merrill Kelly, who entered the night 0-11 with a 5.49 ERA in 16 career starts against the Dodgers. The Statcast-projected 420-foot blast to center sent Chase Field into a frenzy.

That frenzy had barely subsided when Mookie Betts took Kelly deep two pitches later.

The 400-foot shot had the Dodgers’ dugout buzzing, and he’d barely finished the high-five line with his teammates when Freddie Freeman kept the long-ball party going.

Freeman’s first-pitch homer off Kelly gave the Dodgers their first back-to-back-to-back homers to lead off a game in franchise history and gave L.A. a 3-0 lead before an out was recorded.

Assisted by Gavin Lux’s 104.6 mph lineout into a double play to end the inning, Kelly escaped further damage. But the mojo was clearly with the Dodgers, who had jumped out in front in dramatic fashion.

Kelly was encouraged that his velocity was up and that the ball felt the best it has coming out of his hand since his return from injury, but he doesn’t quite yet have the feel for his pitches that he needs.

“To go through that top three with not your best stuff is going to be a tough day for anybody,” Kelly said.

But these D-backs, who have the best record in baseball since July 1, have proven over and over that they’re not going down without a fight. Reigning NL Rookie of the Year Corbin Carroll wasted no time delivering that message against right-hander Gavin Stone.

Carroll launched a deep drive to dead center that once again brought the crowd to its feet. It looked like it had a chance to clear the yellow line for a homer, but center fielder Kevin Kiermaier was also racing back in pursuit.

Kiermaier leapt, but the ball was too high. It struck the wall below the line and ricocheted back into shallow center. Carroll, one of the fastest baserunners in MLB, busted it right out of the box and never slowed down. By the time the Dodgers gathered the ball, he was already rounding third and had an inside-the-park home run standing up. His 14.32-second race around the bases was the seventh-fastest home-to-home time since Statcast tracking began in 2015.

Jake McCarthy and Joc Pederson followed with singles, Lourdes Gurriel Jr. laced a two-run double and Eugenio Suárez plated Gurriel with a sac fly sandwiched between a pair of groundouts to give the D-backs a 4-3 lead.

“That's one of the great qualities of this team -- their intensity, their focus, it never stops,” D-backs manager Torey Lovullo said. “And they were down 3-0 in the top of the first inning. The top of the first inning, with three home runs, it was almost unbelievable the way it happened. But it happened and we got back in the dugout and took care of our own business.”

One inning, four homers, seven runs, some Statcast accolades and a franchise first for a baseball club that predates the state of Arizona -- if you didn’t already know the NL West race was not for the faint of heart, the Dodgers and D-backs spelled it out for you right out of the gate.

Unfortunately for the D-backs, Tommy Edman’s tiebreaking two-run single in the ninth gave the Dodgers a second straight win, but they sure haven’t made it easy on the reigning NL West champs.

“Tonight was, man, a lot going on, a lot to unpack,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said. “A lot of grit, fight, from both teams. And those guys gave us all we could handle.”

The calendar will flip to September with Arizona (76-60) trailing Los Angeles (82-54) by six games, with two games left in this series and 26 games remaining for both clubs in the regular season. San Diego (77-61) also sits six games back and isn’t going away either.

Even if the Dodgers hold on to make it 11 titles in the last 12 years, it’s clear there will be no runaway winner in the NL West this season.