LOS ANGELES — Chris Taylor allowed the Los Angeles Dodgers to survive another day, unloading with three home runs and six RBIs on Thursday in a decisive 11-2 victory over the Atlanta Braves in Game 5 of the National League Championship Series.
AJ Pollock added two home runs and drove in four, and seven Dodgers pitchers shut down the Braves, who still lead the best-of-seven series 3-2. The Dodgers are 4-0 in elimination games this postseason and have won seven consecutive going back to 2020.
Taylor became the 12th player to hit three home runs in a postseason game and the first since Enrique Hernandez did it for the Dodgers in Game 5 of the 2017 NLCS against the Chicago Cubs at Wrigley Field.
Taylor struck out in the eighth inning in his bid for a fourth home run.
Freddie Freeman hit a two-run home run for the Braves, who have two more chances to advance to their first World Series since 1999. Game 6 is scheduled for Saturday at Atlanta, which would be the site of Game 7, if necessary, on Sunday.
The Braves also held a 3-1 NLCS lead on the Dodgers last season but failed to pull off one more victory. Los Angeles advanced and eventually won the World Series.
Freeman’s first-inning home run came off Dodgers right-hander Joe Kelly, who was opening the bullpen game. Kelly did not finish the half-inning, leaving after 28 pitches due to right shoulder stiffness.
The Dodgers answered in the second inning, first on a solo home run from Pollock. After a single by Albert Pujols, Taylor gave the Dodgers a 3-2 lead with a home run to left off Braves left-hander Max Fried.
Taylor boosted the Dodgers’ lead to 4-2 in the third inning with an RBI single. After Pujols walked in the fifth inning, ending Fried’s night, Taylor went deep again, this one to center field off right-hander Chris Martin.
Fried gave up five runs on eight hits over 4 2/3 innings with two walks and three strikeouts. It was just the second time the Braves lost a Fried start since the beginning of August, with the other coming Sept. 1 at Dodger Stadium.
Taylor’s third home run came in the seventh inning against left-hander Dylan Lee, as he became the first player to hit three home runs in an elimination game.
Pujols, 41, reached base three times, with two hits. Taylor went 4-for-5 while Trea Turner, Cody Bellinger and Pollock each had three hits for Los Angeles.
Evan Phillips (1-0) tossed 1 1/3 scoreless innings for the victory, and Brusdar Graterol and Blake Treinen each pitched two scoreless innings.
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–Doug Padilla, Field Level Media