LOS ANGELES -- The temperature at first pitch registered at a sizzling 100° F as the NL Division Series opener between the Dodgers and Braves got underway on Saturday afternoon at Dodger Stadium.
But the Braves had an additional source of triple-digit heat bearing down on them: Tarik Skubal.
Skubal came out blazing in his first home postseason start, striking out seven and holding the Braves to one run on two hits across six innings. He threw his hardest pitch of the season -- a 101.1 mph fastball to Austin Riley in the fourth inning -- and had his highest average four-seamer velocity this year at 98.1 mph.
Under the hot sun, Skubal hardly seemed to break a sweat -- figuratively -- through his first five innings. After giving up a leadoff single to Drake Baldwin, the southpaw retired 15 straight batters, striking out seven of them.
But to open the sixth inning, Skubal surrendered a leadoff homer to Sean Murphy, which made it a one-run game after Teoscar Hernández's two-run blast two innings earlier. Once the Braves got on the board, they seemed to gain some momentum.
Skubal walked nine-hole hitter Ha-Seong Kim, and his next two batters grounded into fielder's choices, leaving him with traffic on the bases. He issued his second walk of the inning to Ozzie Albies before getting Matt Olson to fly out to escape the jam, stranding two runners.
The 28-pitch sixth inning ended up being Skubal's last, as a two-run homer from Kyle Tucker and a solo shot from Max Muncy padded the Dodgers' lead in the bottom half of the frame.