Dodgers beat Rockies 5-3 as Colorado skids to fourth straight loss

LOS ANGELES: The Dodgers gave their home fans plenty to cheer about on Monday evening, as Mookie Betts and Shohei Ohtani came through with clutch hits to lead Los Angeles to a 5-3 victory over the struggling Colorado Rockies at Dodger Stadium.

Betts opened the scoring in the third inning, launching a two-run homer that brought Gavin Lux home and energized the crowd. It was Betts’ fifth home run of the season and a reminder of his offensive firepower.

Shohei Ohtani followed suit in the fifth inning, crushing a solo shot to right-center for his sixth homer of the year. The blast extended the Dodgers’ lead to 3-0 and sent a surge of excitement through the stadium.

Los Angeles continued to pile on in the sixth, as Max Muncy delivered an RBI double and Will Smith added a sacrifice fly to push the lead to 5-0, giving the Dodgers what seemed like a comfortable cushion.

However, the Rockies showed signs of life in the seventh. Elehuris Montero led off with a double and scored on a Brenton Doyle single. Charlie Blackmon and Ryan McMahon followed with back-to-back RBI singles, trimming the Dodgers’ lead to 5-3.

But the rally stopped there. The Dodgers’ bullpen stepped up to shut the door. Ryan Brasier tossed a scoreless eighth inning, and closer Evan Phillips handled the ninth with ease, notching his sixth save of the season.

With the win, the Dodgers improved to 11-5 and maintained their lead in the NL West. The Rockies, meanwhile, dropped to 4-12 and extended their losing streak to four games, still searching for momentum early in the season.