LOS ANGELES – The Yankees and Dodgers, who hadn’t faced each other in 4 years before the series opener on Friday, squared off in the second of three games in their series. Jake Bauers had the most impressive day on the offensive side of things for the Yankees, launching a pair of 2-run homers that accounted for 4 of their 6 runs. The other 2 came on home runs from Aaron Judge and Oswaldo Cabrera. Meanwhile, Gerrit Cole picked up yet another win and improved his record to 7-0. He tossed 6 innings and allowed only 1 run while striking out 5 Dodgers and allowing only 4 hits. The only run he allowed came on a David Peralta RBI single. Los Angeles would score 2 more times courtesy of an RBI triple from Miguel Vargas and an RBI single by Miguel Rojas, but it wouldn’t be enough to overcome the home run barrage put on display by New York.

Here are three takeaways from the loss:

Jake Bauers homers twice off Grove

If there was one man on the Yankee roster who the Dodgers probably weren’t expecting to hit a pair of home runs on Saturday, it was Jake Bauers. Bauers has only appeared in 26 of the Yankee’s 60 games this year. He had only hit 3 home runs all season coming into the game, but got the start in left field, nonetheless. He took the most of his chance in front of the Los Angeles crowd, blasting 2-run home runs in both the second and fourth innings. Bauers accounted for 4 RBI and outscored the Dodgers by himself. He was a big part of the victory and emphasized the importance of having depth on a big-league roster. After the game, he made some remarks on his gratitude to have an opportunity with the Yankees:

Perhaps his performance on Saturday night will help to prove his case for more playing time going forward. Bauers is one player that the Yankees can count on to remain motivated and driven to make an impact at the big-league level. The Dodgers will have to wait and see if Bauers can make a difference in the rubber match on Sunday.

Dodger pitching falls victim to the long ball

Usually, it’s not very easy to win a baseball game against the New York Yankees if you allow 4 home runs. Their lineup is built to mash the baseball over the fence, and Michael Grove allowed them to get off to a hot start by doing just that. Grove, who made his return from the injured list, was greeted rudely and ended up allowing 4 ER over 5 innings. While Grove allowed Jake Bauers to get the best of him twice, Aaron Judge and Oswaldo Cabrera each took advantage of the Dodger bullpen and hit solo shots of their own. It was an impressive day for Judge, who also made a potential catch of the year in right field to rob J.D. Martinez of an extra base hit.

Los Angeles will need to make a better effort to contain the home runs in the rubber match if they want to give themselves a shot to win the series. Luckily, they’ll give the ball to Bobby Miller. Miller has been excellent in his MLB tenure so far, holding a record of 2-0 with an ERA of 1.64. He’ll look to hold the Yankee’s power in check and lead the way to a series victory.

Gerrit Cole stumps the Dodger lineup

The Cole train was full steam ahead in Los Angeles. He was able to labor his way through 6 innings, allowing only 1 run and striking out 5 batters. He brough his ERA on the year to 2.82 and remains undefeated so far. Cole has been nothing short of extremely reliable this season for the Yankees and has provided them with some very important success as other key starting pitchers such as Carlos Rodón remain on the injured list. His dominance on the mound kept the Dodgers offense from putting up any major numbers before the Yankees could grab a big enough lead to take the win all the way home.

Wandy Peralta would allow 2 runs to come home for the Dodgers, but scoreless appearances from Michael King and Clay Holmes helped to shut down any comeback attempt from Los Angeles. After the game, Cole had nothing to say about himself. Instead, he commented on Aaron Judge’s impact for the team and how grateful he is to have him around.

The rubber match between the 2 teams will take place on Sunday afternoon. Domingo German will face off against Bobby Miller, with both starters looking to limit high-octane offenses and help their teams secure a big series win in primetime.

First pitch is scheduled for 4:10 PST and the game will be featured on ESPN’s Sunday Night Baseball.