JC's Dodger Line Drives | May 6: Dodgers' Luck Turns Historic with No. 13

Closing Out History

Though the game was no longer in doubt, the eighth inning saw the return of former Dodger reliever Joe Beimel, fresh off the disabled list. Ex-batterymate Russell Martin doubled into the left field corner, but Beimel was able to retire the other Dodger hitters.

To pitch the top of the ninth, Dodger manager Joe Torre requested the services of Brent Leach, who made his major league debut. Leach retired the first two batters before surrendering his first big league walk.

He followed that up with his first major league strikeout and the Dodgers had salted away their 13th consecutive home victory to start the season and bump Ty Cobb's Tigers to the second position.

Numbers To Note

The 13-game streak is the most consecutive victories at home at any point in the season since the Dodgers won 13 in a row from May 4 to June 5, 1993.

The Dodgers have won 23 of their last 26 regular season home games, beginning Aug. 21, 2008 for a .885 winning percentage. They are also 31-7 (.816) since Aug. 1, 2008, the day Manny Ramirez made his Dodger debut. Going back to last year's All-Star break, the Blue Crew is 36-9 (.800) in regular season home play.

The victory pushes the Dodgers' overall record to 21-8, the best in all the majors. The next best record is 20-10 by the Toronto Blue Jays. The Dodgers 21-8 mark is their best since starting 21-8 in 1983, a year when they claimed the National League Western Division with a 91-71 record.

Up Next

The Dodgers look to extend their winning streak further on Thursday when they send Randy Wolf (1-1, 3.93 ERA) out to face the Nationals Jordan Zimmerman (2-1, 4.24) in a game that starts at 7:10 PM Pacific. Prime Ticket will carry the game with Hall of Fame announcer Vin Scully at the mic.

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