Fireworks have mostly been replaced by drone shows, so the crowd was ecstatic to see and hear the old-fashioned, ecologically insensitive aerial explosions, especially after an 11th-inning walkoff!

I love extra innings, but I ABSOLUTELY HATE the “designated runner” rule. It’s so stupid, probably the worst thing that has happened to baseball in the past 100 years! It ruins the experience of wondering when a game could possibly end, and getting an extra “7th-inning stretch.”

I was at that 18-inning World Series game when Max Muncy broke a 2-2 tie with a walkoff homer. That night was something I will never forget. I walked home down a packed Sunset Boulevard with exuberant Dodger fans and sullen Red Sox fans. I made it to a bar just before last call and got home about 2 a.m. It was glorious! (This after getting to the stadium as soon as the gates opened at 4:10.)

A game like that can never ever happen again, unless Major League Baseball comes to its senses and rescinds that stupid-ass rule.

So, last night, we got a couple extra innings, and it was great fun! A good start for Gavin Stone. A perfect inning from reliever Joe Kelly. And a walkoff single by newcomer Andy Pages that scored gimme runner Will Smith. Pages also accounted for four of the Dodgers’ nine hits!

But it wasn’t magical … it wasn’t a night to remember forever!

MY SCORECARDS
GAME 34: Dodgers 4-Braves 3 (11 innings)