The Los Angeles Dodgers began their streak against the San Diego Padres with a 3-1 win behind Justin Turner, who hit all the goals with two homers.
Turner’s solo homer from Joe Musgrove leveled the game in the second inning, and his two-run shot in the seventh gave the Dodgers a clear lead. While home runs in front of Musgrove made the difference, the Padres’ starter was dismissive of Turner.
“I don’t know what his numbers are against me. When he’s in the box I don’t feel like he’s a big threat,” Musgrove told reporters after the game. “He’s a good hitter, he’s done a lot of damage to the teams I’ve played on in the past.
“But out of all the guys in the lineup, I didn’t feel like he posed a huge threat. I just wasn’t throwing the pitches very well and he was swinging them well.”
Turner continued his hot hitting, hitting another homer on Saturday but opting not to engage in the barb trade with Musgrove.
“I’m not going to answer that,” Turner replied when asked if he wanted to answer Musgrove. “I’m not going into that. Just whatever.”
Turner is 5-to-12 (.417 batting average) with two homers, four RBI and a 1.417 on-base-plus slugging percentage against Musgrove throughout his career.
Turner found a better feeling
After dealing with disagreements for much of the season so far, Turner said working with Dodgers beating coach Robert Van Scoyoc last week unleashed a better feeling.
“I’ve been struggling through some stuff and I feel like I’m about to break out. It felt pretty good to get results,” Turner said during the Padres series.
“It’s good to get results. I don’t go up there trying to hit home runs. I try to put together a good racquet and hit the ball somewhere hard. I’ve got some pretty good ones that have gone over the fence.
Do you follow Dodger Blue on Instagram? It’s the best way to see exclusive coverage of games and events, get your questions answered, and more!