Dodgers snap 7-game losing streak in extras after Edwin Díaz blows another save
The Los Angeles Dodgers are back in the win column. Somehow.
The defending champions snapped a seven-game losing streak in extra innings on Saturday, defeating the Arizona Diamondbacks 2-1 in a game that looked all but lost with three outs to go in the ninth inning.
Dodgers closer Edwin Díaz blew a 1-0 lead by allowing back-to-back triples to open the ninth, but miraculously got out the situation with the winning run on third with no outs. It felt like a mere reprieve with how L.A. had been playing.
It took a wild pitch and Shohei Ohtani infield single to score the extra-innings ghost runner in the top of the 10th inning, then reliever Jack Dreyer entered the game and kept the D-backs scoreless to give his team its first win since July 30.
Dreyer got into trouble with a James McCann infield single with one out, but got Ryan Waldschmidt, the D-backs' hero of the previous game, to ground into a game-ending double play.
That's a W! pic.twitter.com/VL99ECrjef
— Los Angeles Dodgers (@Dodgers) August 9, 2026
Before the drama of the ninth and 10th innings, the two teams had held each other scoreless via strong starts by Yoshinobu Yamamoto and Brandon Pfaadt. Kyle Tucker continued a recent uptick in offense with a solo homer to lead off the eighth inning, one of only six Dodgers hits all game.
The Dodgers (70-47) were the first team to reach 69 wins and are now the third team to reach 70, behind the Milwaukee Brewers and Atlanta Braves. Their losing streak hurt, but Saturday's win at least allowed them to build their division lead up to 8.5, after previously holding an advantage of as many as 14 games.
Of course, even in a win, there are some questions to answer. Such as "Should a guy with a 10.80 ERA still be our closer?"
The Dodgers have an Edwin Díaz problem
The Dodgers went through a white-knuckle postseason last year due to a high-priced bullpen that imploded in September, forcing them to build a late-inning group of relievers on the fly and cross their fingers.
That worked, but the team clearly didn't enjoy the experience. So it went into the offseason and lured Díaz away from the New York Mets on a record three-year, $69 million deal in free agency.
Díaz, to put it politely, has not worked out so far in his Dodgers career. He started off fine, with only two hits allowed in his first five appearances (four saves), but then allowed three runs in back-to-back starts and landed on the injured list with loose bodies in his pitching elbow. He returned on July 29 and has continued to look shaky.
He hit his nadir Friday when he allowed a walk-off two-run homer to Waldschmidt, a rookie who entered the game with one career homer in 50 games.
This blown save was even quicker, and felt even more fated. Perhaps there's some confidence to be gained from the fact that he got out of a situation where the D-backs absolutely should have finished him off, but his escape was dependent on a Gabriel Moreno line drive flying straight at Dodgers third baseman Max Muncy.
The Dodgers once again have an expensive bullpen problem on their hands, to go with an expensive lineup that ranked 21st in runs scored since July 1 entering Saturday. It can be a tricky decision when to change a reliever's role based on recent performance, but it's not like Díaz's underlying numbers are encouraging since his return from the IL.
