Justin Turner’s bat come alive against Padres 

LOS ANGELES (News4usonline) – When you heard the crack of Justin Turner’s bat in the bottom of the second inning in the Los Angeles Dodgers’ first game of a three-game series against the San Diego Padres, you knew it was gone. Turner seemed to know it as well as he took off around the bases with jettison speed until the Dodger Stadium crowd erupted in cheers.

Turner accounted for three runs against the Padres during a home game for the Dodgers. Those three runs were all the runs the Dodgers needed to hand the Padres a 3-1 defeat at Dodger Stadium on June 30.

The three runs that Turner drove in for the Dodgers came from two home runs he connected for during the game.

After going yard in the bottom of the second inning to tie the game at 1-1, Turner came back for more helping at the plate in the bottom of the seventh inning with a two-run blast that sent the Dodger Stadium crowd into delirium.

It’s a good thing that Turner came through with his big bat because the Dodgers didn’t really have too much else going for them offensively.

Those two home runs that Turner hit accounted for two of the five hits Los Angeles was able to muster on the evening. On his home run in the second inning, Turner tagged San Diego pitcher Joe Musgrove with a 383-foot over-the-wall shot.

Turner wound up going 3-for-3 and scoring two runs, a pretty good night for a lot of hitters. Turner then got to Musgrove again in the seventh with a 404-foot blast. Despite registering 10 strikeouts, Musgrove was sent to the showers after Turner completed his multi-home run game.

Considering what Turner has battled through this season, his performance against the Padres, a team right on the heels of the Dodgers in Major League Baseball’s West Division, just might be a good sign for the home team. On the season, Turner is hitting .227 with six home runs and 41 RBIs.

Perhaps going deep twice on one of the better pitchers this season might be able to jumpstart Turner into playing at an All-Star level, something that he’s done a couple of times. The win by the Dodgers was a good start to a home stand that will play out until MLB’s All-Star Weekend.

After their three-game series against the Padres, the Dodgers play the Colorado Rockies for three games before ending the homestand with a four-game series against the Chicago Cubs.  Up until Turner’s two-run parting shot, the Dodgers and Padres had been locked in a 1-1 tie. San Diego managed to get seven hits in the game but the Padres also left 15 runners on base.

It’s a good thing that Turner’s bat exploded the way it did because the Dodgers just were not able to do anything on the offensive end. And all total, San Diego pitchers struck out a dozen Dodgers batters.

Before facing the Dodgers, Musgrove (8-2) had only lost one time this season. He now has two defeats on the year, thanks to a red-haired third baseman who pulled out his magic stick at the right time for the Dodgers.