The 2019 season will forever be remembered as the year of the walk-off for the Dodgers; more specifically. the year of the walk-off by Dodgers rookies, including a few making their major league debuts. But on Tuesday night in front of a Dodger Stadium crowd of 52,231, the Dodgers pulled off yet another come-from-behind win which, although not a walk-off win, included ‘one of the biggest hits of the year.’

Although the game was against the National League West last-place Colorado Rockies, Rockies right-hander Chi Chi González managed to keep the Dodgers scoreless for 6.1 innings, during which he had allowed only two harmless singles.

But despite his dominance over the best team in baseball after allowing no runs and only two singles while walking three and striking out three in his remarkable 6.1 innings of work, González had clearly run out of gas in the bottom of the seventh inning when he issued a leadoff walk to Dodgers center fielder Cody Bellinger. And even though he struck out Dodgers left fielder A.J. Pollock after the Bellinger walk, he gave up a single to Dodgers first baseman Matt Beaty to bring the potential go-ahead run in the (then) 2-0 contest to the plate in the form of 36-year-old / 14-year MLB veteran Dodgers catcher Russell Martin.

Rockies manager Bud Black had seen enough and pulled González after having made 101 total pitches opting to bring in right-hander Bryan Shaw to face the veteran Dodgers catcher. But on the fifth pitch of the at-bat, Martin smoked Shaw’s 95-mph cutter 369 feet to left-center field for a three-run home run to give the Dodgers a 3-2 lead. It was a devastating blow to Shaw and the Rockies, especially for González, on what Dodgers manager Dave Roberts called one of the biggest hits of the season – rookie walk-offs notwithstanding.

“In a big spot he just has that pulse where he can still stay in the strike zone, compete, and got a cutter that backed up and really deposited it pretty well,” Roberts said of Martin and his game-changing blast. “One of the biggest hits, really, of the year for us.”

But wait… there’s more!

Fresh off the bench, fellow 36-year-old Dodgers pinch-hitter David Freese followed Martin’s three-run home run with a solo home run of his own, a 389-footer to right-center field to give the Dodgers a huge insurance run. It was the 16th time that the Dodgers have gone back-to-back this season.

But wait… there’s more!

With one out in the bottom of the eighth, 34-year-old Dodgers third baseman Justin Turner sent a Wade Davis 88-mph cutter 408 feet into the Left Field Pavilion for a solo home run of his own.

“I think we’re going to go to Denny’s after this and get the 55-and-over menu and order some Grand Slams,” Turner kidded with reporters after matching his 11-year MLB career-high 27th home run of the season and 17th in the second half.

As for Tuesday night’s eventual 5-3 Dodgers win on what was clearly ‘Oldtimers Night,’ Martin told reporters what Dodger fans have almost come to expect from their (now) 91-50 beloved team, who lowered their Magic Number of five to clinch their seventh consecutive NL West title.

“It just shows that baseball doesn’t discriminate,’ Martin said. ‘You can be a good player and be young, and you can be a good player and be a little bit older. Fortunately, this club has both, and we’re in a good spot.”

A very good spot.

As they say: ‘Old Guys Rule!’

Play Ball!

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