RESOLVING THE LEDGER
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"He’s on a mission, and it starts tonight," Los Angeles Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said in the postgame via SportsNetLA ahead of southpaw Blake Snell's return to the mound on Tuesday against the Kansas City Royals .
Well, the mission was far more than accomplished, as Snell displayed a dominant outing through six innings of one-run ball, striking out 10 Royals and giving up three hits in the Dodgers' 5-4 extra-innings victory.
From the first pitch, Snell showcased no signs of rust.
The 33-year-old former Cy Young Award winner — who hadn't pitched since May and later underwent Nanoneedle surgery to remove loose bodies in his elbow — topped out at 97.5 mph in his first frame of work.
This, in turn, led to Snell striking out the side in the first on 13 pitches. Snell continued to rack up the strikeouts, punching out seven of the first 10 batters he faced.
Aug 11, 2026; Los Angeles, California, USA; Los AngelesDodgerspitcher Blake Snell (7) delivers in the first inning against the Kansas City Royals at Dodger Stadium. -- Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images
His curveball accounted for half of his strikeouts (five), while his fastball (four) and changeup filled in the remaining punchout totals.
"The curveball is finally coming back to how I remember it being," Snell said via SportsNetLA on the effectiveness of his curveball in his return to the mound. "It was always a wipeout [pitch]. I am finally releasing it where I need to release it.”
Snell had the most trouble in the fourth inning, allowing two hits before Salvador Perez poked a sacrifice fly to left field that tied the game, 1-1.
And even though Tyler Tolbert led off the fifth inning with a double, Snell bounced back and retired the final six batters of his outing. Roberts set a soft threshold for Snell's debut, poking him at 80 pitches through five innings, but with the southpaw sitting at 70 pitches through his initial five innings, Roberts had a short conversation with Snell about returning for the sixth.
“I feel like I had more left. I’m excited about that," Snell said.
The Los Angeles offense is still trying to find themselves, though.
Mookie Betts struck first for the Dodgers in the bottom of the second with his 14th home run of the season — his first since July 20 — but the bats stiffled for the next five innings.
It wasn't until the seventh that Alex Call smacked an RBI double down the left-center gap, and pinch-hitter Teoscar Hernández hit an RBI double of his own to put up a two-spot for Los Angeles.
Evan Phillips came into the eighth with a two-run lead, but it was quickly relinquished by way of a pair of RBI singles provided by Jac Caglianone and Salvador Perez.
The tie wouldn't last very long, as an Andy Pages bobbled ball in center field allowed Caglianone to score.
Betts made his presence felt again, smacking an RBI single to tie the game for a third time in the eighth.
Aug 11, 2026; Los Angeles, California, USA; Los Angeles Dodgers third baseman Max Muncy (13) hits a walk-off single to defeat the Kansas City Royals in the tenth inning at Dodger Stadium. -- Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images
For just the third time this season — the fewest in MLB — the Dodgers found themselves in extra innings.
And again, Max Muncy found himself in the spotlight during this home stand, driving in the winning run in the bottom of the 10th with the bases full of Dodgers on an RBI single to center field.
With the win, the Dodgers secure a series win — their first of August — and look for their first sweep since June on Wednesday with Eric Lauer on the bump.
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