LOS ANGELES – Julio Teheran only gave up three hits in 5 2/3 innings Friday night, but all three of them cleared the fence at Dodger Stadium.
The Dodgers only have five hits all night, but four were homers including three by rookie Corye Seager in a 4-2 win to open a three-game series in memorable fashion before a crowd of 46,366.
The first Dodgers rookie to hit three home runs in a game since Don Demeter in 1959, Seager helped assure the bad experience of Dodger Stadium for Teheran went unabated.
The Dodgers used three solo homers off Teheran (1-6) to erase the Braves’ early two-run lead at Dodger Stadium, where Teheran has posted an 8.27 ERA and given up six homers in 20 2/3 innings while losing all four games he’s pitched, regular season and playoffs.
“It was a weird night,” said Teheran, who was charged with three hits, three runs and two walks and had seven strikeouts in 5 2/3 innings. “Weird that I felt real good and made good pitches, and even though I made good pitches they still hit them for homers. It’s one of those games. I feel good. There’s nothing I can do.”
Teheran slipped to 0-6 with an 5.50 ERA in seven career starts against the Dodgers, including six postseason games and a loss in the 2013 division series. It’s the only team he’s faced more than three times without getting a win.
Seager, who turned 22 last month and looks even younger, hit his first two home runs of the game in the fourth and sixth innings. Fellow rookie Trayce Thompson homered in the fifth against Teheran, who gave up as many homers as he had allowed in his previous eight starts combined.
Seager’s third homer — and 12th this season — came off left-hander Hunter Cervenka in the eighth inning.
Teheran was 1-3 with a 1.58 ERA in his past eight starts before Friday, and he’d posted a 0.42 ERA and .151 opponents’ average in his previous three road starts.
The Braves staked Teheran to a 2-0 lead with a run in each of the first two innings off right-hander Kenta Maeda (5-3).
“(Teheran) pitched really well,” Braves interim manager Brian Snitker said. “We jumped out (to a lead). Would’ve have liked to have kept adding on runs there, and he just kind of shut us down there after the (second) inning. We had a nice little flow going and scored those two quick runs, then got shut down.”
Freddie Freeman drew a two-out walk in the first inning, advanced on a passed ball and scored on Adonis Garcia’s single for a 1-0 lead. The Braves added a run in the second inning on three singles including Mallex Smith’s RBI hit up the middle.
Then the Dodgers broke out the sticks and started hitting balls out of the park.
“It’s a different ballpark — the ball flies here,” Teheran said. “I’m glad the way I’ve been pitching. Even though I’ve got a couple losses, I’m happy the way I’ve been feeling, the way I’ve been executing pitches. Just got to keep going, keep working hard the way I’ve been doing, and I’m going to find the luck one day.”
