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PHOENIX\u00a0\u2014\u00a0From the crack of the bat and the trajectory of the ball, it was immediately clear that the Dodgers had found a new way to lose.<\/p>\n
Dodgers closer Edwin D\u00edaz hung a slider over the plate to Arizona\u2019s Ryan Waldschmidt, and he sent it over the left-center field wall for a two-run, walk-off homer in a 4-3 win that sent the Dodgers to a season-worst seventh straight loss.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019ve got to find it tonight, tomorrow when I come to the field,\u201d D\u00edaz said of his slider, which hasn\u2019t been nearly as effective as usual this season. \u201cBecause that\u2019s my pitch. I got a good fastball, but my slider is the strikeout pitch. And today, I missed with two strikes. … I\u2019m still positive. I\u2019m always positive. Just got to do my job better and help the team to win.\u201d<\/p>\n
For the first time in a long time, an in-division matchup felt like it had real stakes.<\/p>\n
The Dodgers\u2019 recent skid dropped their National League West lead into single digits for the first time in over a month. They are now only 7\u00bd games ahead of the second-place Diamondbacks in the division.<\/p>\n
Shohei Ohtani and Pete Crow-Armstrong each had three hits and homered twice in the Dodgers\u2019 7-6 loss to the Chicago Cubs on Wednesday at Wrigley Field.<\/p>\n
They also now have the fourth-best record in the majors (69-47), falling behind the Brewers (72-44) and Braves (70-46) and Rays (69-46).<\/p>\n
\u201cA week ago, it looked a lot different,\u201d Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said. \u201cAnd another week from now, it could look even more different. So you\u2019ve just got to put your head down and play baseball.\u201d<\/p>\n
They did, at least, have a better record than last season (67-49) at the 116-game mark. But the Dodgers would prefer to, unlike last year, at least earn a first-round bye, and ideally home-field advantage throughout the playoffs.<\/p>\n
Their performance Friday sent them in the wrong direction.<\/p>\n
\u201cA loss is a loss, but to get walked off never feels good,\u201d Roberts said. \u201cWe didn\u2019t play a clean game, a great game on either side of the baseball, but we did enough to put ourselves in a position to win a game, and unfortunately, we couldn\u2019t finish it.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Dodgers went hitless against Diamondbacks starting pitcher Merrill Kelly for the first five innings. Kyle Tucker and Shohei Ohtani both drew walks, as the Dodgers\u2019 only baserunners before the sixth \u2014 and Ohtani was thrown out attempting to steal second to end the third inning.<\/p>\n
Finally, leading off the sixth, Tommy Edman \u2014 who three innings prior was robbed of a home run on a leaping grab by Diamondbacks right fielder Corbin Carroll \u2014 broke up Kelly\u2019s no-hit bid with a sharp infield hit.<\/p>\n