Kyle Tucker broke the game open in the seventh inning Friday night, crushing a grand slam that carried the Dodgers past the Marlins 6-2 in Miami. He finished with three hits and five RBIs, and the win pushed the Dodgers to 90-57 while stretching their run to eight straight.
That is why this game mattered now. The Dodgers had already been in form after beating the Cincinnati Reds 14-1 earlier in the week, and this was the kind of swing that can turn a tight late-season race into a fast finish. Tucker had been on a much better stretch after a rough first half at the plate, and his first grand slam since summer of 2023 gave the Dodgers a clean answer when they needed one.
Blake Snell kept the game within reach long enough for Tucker to take over. He allowed one run on four hits in 5 2/3 innings, and the Dodgers led 1-0 after Tucker’s sacrifice fly in the third before Smith added a run-scoring single in the sixth. The Marlins answered in that inning with an RBI double from Agustín Ramírez off Evan Phillips, but when the Dodgers loaded the bases with two outs against the Miami bullpen in the seventh, Tucker made the inning count with one swing.
Josue De Paula’s MLB debut gave the night an extra layer of attention, but it did not turn into a breakout. He went 0-for-3, flied out to Esteury Ruiz in his first major-league at-bat, drew a walk in the fourth, and grounded out to Kyle Stowers in his third trip. A steal attempt later disappeared after a manager’s challenge, a sharp reminder that a debut can arrive with noise and still leave the player with work to do.
The Dodgers now have the kind of margin teams spend months chasing. Their NL West magic number fell to 4 after the win, putting the division close enough to feel in sight without being secured. They will get another chance to keep the pressure on Saturday at loanDepot Park, with Tyler Glasnow scheduled to start for the Dodgers and Tyler Phillips set for the Marlins. For Tucker, the larger question is no longer whether he can flash; it is how often he can do it when October starts to close in.
