There is no disputing that David Peralta‘s exciting pinch-hit walk-off two-run single in the bottom of the ninth inning in Saturday night’s 2-1 Dodgers win over the Chicago Cubs at Dodger Stadium was, to this point, the biggest hit of the (now) 15-day-old 2023 season.

However, it was the ‘other’ biggest hit of the (now) 15-day-old 2023 season that made Peralta’s game-winning hit even possible – the one-out double to left field by 23-year-old Dodgers shortstop Miguel Vargas, which followed 25-year-old Dodgers center fielder James Outman‘s one-out single to right.

Although Outman scored easily on ‘Freight Train’s (as Peralta is known) two-out single to short right on the first pitch of his game-winning at-bat, had Vargas not reached second base on his hit, he would not have been in scoring position and would not have scored what proved to be the game-winning run; and even at that it was a very close play at the plate.

“It was big. I mean, our guys are grinding, they’re fighting, and just to kinda see how it unfolded,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts told reporters after his team’s exciting 2-1 walk-off win. “You know, you see Outman start that rally and Vargie with the big hit. You know, he was dying for a knock and you saw his excitement getting on second base. And then, obviously, David Peralta, who was dying for a hit as well, to come up in a big spot and win it for us. I don’t think it could have ended any better.”

Roberts went on to give kudos to 26-year-old right-hander Michael Grove who, after a couple of rough starts to begin the season, pitched exceptionally well on Jackie Robinson Day, allowing just one run on two hits, while striking out six and walking one in his 5.2 innings of work.

The Dodgers skipper also acknowledged the great outing by 26-year-old left-hander Caleb Ferguson, who entered the game with one out and the bases loaded in the top of the eighth inning and proceeded to strike out always dangerous Cubs left fielder Ian Happ and equally dangerous Cubs right fielder Seiya Suzuki – both swinging – to end the inning and the threat.

“We had some really good outings by guys in the ‘pen, namely Fergie, and that was the difference in the game, so I gotta give Caleb a lot of credit,” Roberts said of Ferguson.

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From a personal and rather ironic side of the game, Peralta shared this with reporters post-game:

“I told Julio (Urías) earlier, if they give me the chance I’m going to end this game.”  

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From a statistical and historic side of the game, there’s this:

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Play Ball!

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