It wasn’t pretty, but it was beautiful.

In his first four games in a Dodger uniform – against his former team, no less – Dodgers center fielder A.J. Pollock is 7-for-17 (.412), with one home run, two doubles, and six RBI. He has walked twice and been struck out once.

On Sunday afternoon before a modest Dodger Stadium crowd of 43,815, the 31-year-old Hebron, Connecticut native and Arizona Diamondbacks first-round draft pick in 2009 out of Notre Dame hit what was arguably his biggest hit for his new team, a one-out double in the bottom of the eighth inning that he squirted down the right field line to turn a 7-5 deficit into a tie ballgame. It wasn’t a pretty hit, but it was absolutely beautiful in the eyes of his teammates and Dodger fans around the globe.

“To be honest, I was focused on how quick [Dbacks right-hander Yoshihisa Hirano] was to the plate and it was messing up my timing,” Pollock said of his two run double that left him standing on third base after a bobble (error) by Diamondbacks right fielder Adam Jones. “I’d love to take credit for a great swing, but a little bit of luck was involved. It wasn’t the prettiest swing, but it worked out.”

Worked out it did.

With the score now tied 7-7 and with Pollock on third base, Dodgers third baseman Max Muncy lifted a fly ball to left-center field that was deep enough for Pollock to bring home the eventual winning run.

“To be on third base was just as big [as his hit],” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts told reporters after the game.

What was it like being ‘that guy’ to help his new team take three-of-four from his old team? As you might expect, Pollock never really gave it much thought, although he did acknowledge that the four-game opening series was a bit unusual.

“If you can draw it up, you want to get off to a good start, it does feel good to get off to a good start here,” Pollock said. “The beginning of the year is a little weird, getting the first hit and first win and that out of the way. Not normal. The first three games were crazy and the comeback today was great.”

Certainly worth mentioning is that Dodgers normal right fielder but Sunday’s starting first baseman Cody Bellinger continued his blazing hot start to the 2019 campaign. The 23-year-old Scottsdale, Arizona native and Dodgers 2013 third-round draft pick is 10-for-20 (.500) in the early goings, with four home runs and eight runs batted in. He has also walked once and struck out only twice thus far this season. He has also stolen a base and on Sunday he legged out a slow roller to Dbacks shortstop Nick Ahmed that was crucial in keeping that ever-important eighth inning alive for the Dodgers.

Even though Arizona is not expected to be a powerhouse in the NL West this season, you have to give them credit for forcing the Dodgers to play their best baseball through the first four games of the season. That being said, the Dodgers have already scored 42 runs and have slugged 14 home runs through their first four games. They did not hit their 14th home run until their 15th game last season.

Beautiful indeed.

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