Miguel Vargas and Shohei Ohtani took manager Dave Roberts off the hook for a strategic decision that backfired in the eighth inning on Saturday, Vargas opening the bottom of the eighth with a home run to left field and Ohtani blasting a solo shot to right-center to lift the Dodgers to a 5-3 win over the Milwaukee Brewers.
The Dodgers held a 3-2 lead after veteran right-handers Daniel Hudson (sixth) and Blake Treinen (seventh) threw scoreless innings in relief of starter James Paxton, and Roberts turned to closer Evan Phillips to face the heart of the Brewers order — William Contreras, Christian Yelich and Willy Adames — in the eighth.