Bottom's up: Dodgers' lineup depth on display

Nos. 6-7-8 hitters Forsythe, Barnes, Puig combine for five runs, five RBIs

October 8th, 2017

LOS ANGELES -- The Dodgers didn't win 104 regular-season games on the strength of and alone. A handful of superstars can only take a team so far.
No, the Dodgers won 104 regular-season games because of , and an offense so deep it seems to have an answer for everything.
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"We've got a lot of good players, and a lot of good depth," said Dodgers manager Dave Roberts after his club's 8-5 victory in Game 2 of the National League Division Series presented by T-Mobile. "There are so many guys in our lineup that can hurt you."
On a slow night for the heart of the order, L.A.'s six, seven and eight hitters picked up the slack, sending the Dodgers to Arizona for Monday's Game 3 with a 2-0 series lead. Forsythe, Barnes and combined to go 8-for-12 with a walk, five runs and five RBIs.
The trio strung together three straight hits in the game's decisive rally, a four-run outburst in the bottom of the fifth, after the D-backs dipped into to their bullpen.
"These games are dog fights, so it's going to take a team effort and a collective unit," Barnes said. "We've been doing this all year. ... We just trusted that someone was going to get the hit."
On Saturday night, Barnes delivered the critical blow. Making the first postseason start of his career, the 27-year-old backstop singled and scored the go-ahead run in the bottom of the fourth. An inning later, he broke the game open with a two-run double that sent Dodger Stadium into a frenzy.

To begin the frame, cleanup man was hit by a pitch from Arizona starter Robbie Ray. After bounced into a forceout, D-backs manager Torey Lovullo took the ball from Ray, and the bottom of the Dodgers order feasted on an overmatched Arizona bullpen.
Pinch-hitter lined a single to right, and Forsythe plated Bellinger with a single. Barnes followed with his two-run double, chasing reliever . And Puig kept the line moving with an RBI single off .

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"We were just grinding through our at-bats, one through eight, really," Barnes said. "Puig had great at-bats, Logan had a good at-bat. When we're doing that as a unit, we can be pretty special."
Added Granderson: "You can't pick one guy out and say, 'Let's make sure this guy doesn't beat us. ... Everyone has the ability to do something special with the bat when they get the opportunity to."
On Saturday, those opportunities fell to Forsythe, Barnes and Puig. They capitalized.

"There is a lot of buy-in," Roberts said. "It's that team-offense concept. Pass it to the next guy."