Venable keeps Dodgers alive in PCL Finals

Oklahoma City was excited to stave off elimination on Friday night, but the Dodgers know they need two more wins before they can relax.

"Our backs are still up against the wall. It's going to be like that from here on out. If we lose, we go home," outfielder Will Venable said. "We were happy to keep the season going and it's good to be [back in Oklahhoma City], but we've got to keep winning."

Venable, who signed with the Dodgers as a free agent in June, delivered a two-run single in the seventh inning on Friday as Oklahoma City rallied to beat El Paso, 4-2, in Game 3 of the best-of-5 Pacific Coast League Championship Series.

"This group, ever since I've been here, has been really loose. Even when we were down in the [semifinals], even though we're down in the series, nothing changes," the big league veteran said. "This is a confident group, and we're trying to win together and keep the season alive. We played a good, competitive game, and our attitude didn't change."

When the left-handed hitter stepped in against left-hander Kyle McGrath with the Dodgers trailing by one and the bases loaded with one out in the seventh, he had one thing on his mind.

"Just put the ball in play. In that situation, you just want to put the ball in play and if it's on the ground, bust down the line. But all you're really looking to do is put the ball in play and hope to get some runs in," he said. 

Venable did just that with a chopper up the middle that second baseman Carlos Asuaje couldn't wrangle.

"It was great to take the lead, not just for me but for the team, and [Jack] Murphy did a great job behind me to bring in another run," Venable said.

Dodgers No. 3 prospect Alex Verdugo had an RBI single in the third and a sacrifice bunt during the three-run seventh.
No. 21 prospect Micah Johnson singled, walked and stole three bases.

Dodgers left-hander Brett Anderson, recovering from a blister on his pitching hand, allowed a homer to Patrick Kivlehan and two singles while striking out five over five innings. Sam LeCure (1-0) yielded a run on two hits in the seventh and 19th-ranked Dodgers prospect Jacob Rhame walked one and fanned two over two hitless innings to notch his second postseason save.

"When you throw out a guy like [Anderson] to start, you can feel good about things," Venable said. "A rehab start for the big league guys, they need to get their work in, and Brett went out there and was super competitve and executed and gave us a chance to win the game."

Hunter Renfroe, the PCL MVP and the Padres' No. 3 prospect, doubled and scored for the Chihuahuas, whose next chance at the championship comes on Saturday at Oklahoma City.