Shohei Ohtani set a career high with nine triples, while the Dodgers secured an extra-inning victory but still must play in the Wild Card round.

The Dodgers traveled to Arizona on the 25th and, even with their bullpen struggling again, managed a tight 5-4 win. Ohtani recorded his ninth triple of the season, marking a career milestone, and the Dodgers ended their two-game skid, yet it was confirmed postgame that they must compete in the Wild Card round.

On the 24th, the Dodgers lost on a walk-off hit by the Diamondbacks in the bottom of the ninth. On the 25th, Blake Snell started and pitched six full innings, allowing five hits, one walk, and striking out five while giving up one run. Then the Dodgers brought in Roki Sasaki, the “Reiwa Monster,” who had been inactive for over four months. Sasaki threw just 13 pitches in the inning, striking out two and retiring all three batters, keeping the Dodgers ahead 3-1 after seven innings.

In the top of the eighth, the Dodgers added another run, but their bullpen imploded again. Reliever Alex Vesia gave up three runs in just 0.1 innings and was pulled, allowing the Diamondbacks to tie the game at 4-4. In the bottom of the ninth, Clayton Kershaw, who will retire after the season, came in for relief. This marked Kershaw’s fourth career relief appearance and his first in six years, the last being on September 29, 2019, against the Giants. Facing three batters, he recorded two groundouts and one flyout, throwing 15 pitches, eight of which were strikes. The game went into extra innings, with no runs scored in the 10th. In the top of the 11th, the Dodgers scored first to take a 5-4 lead and held on to win, avoiding back-to-back walk-off losses to the same opponent.

Despite the Dodgers’ narrow win, the Phillies also won earlier, confirming that the Dodgers cannot catch them in the standings and will have to play an additional Wild Card game this year. However, three teams in the National League are still competing for the final Wild Card spot, so the Dodgers’ first-round opponent remains undecided.

In this game, Shohei Ohtani went 1-for-5 at the plate, hitting his ninth triple of the season in the first inning. This not only brought in the team’s first run but also set a new personal record and extended his on-base streak to 28 games.