LOS ANGELES _ Halfway between first and second base, moments after his three-run, fourth-inning homer rattled into the left-field bleachers, Yasiel Puig slowed his already unhurried trot to a crawl.
His ears caught the voice of New York Mets first baseman Wilmer Flores. Puig spun his head toward Flores and appeared to spit a four-letter expletive, a fittingly contemptuous gesture for this series, in which the Los Angeles Dodgers have trounced their guests, the latest an 8-2 dismissal Wednesday.
The anger from Flores stemmed from Puig's leisurely pace as he rounded the bases. Eleven seconds passed between the collision of Puig's bat with a doomed sinker from rookie Tyler Pill and Puig touching first base. Puig flexed upon impact. He did not drop his bat until the ball landed. It was an admirable blast, his 13th of the season, and Puig gazed upon it lovingly.
This did not endear Puig to the Mets _ but then, the Dodgers have not been kind to them this week. The offense piled up 10 runs Monday and hung a dozen Tuesday.
On Wednesday, Pill managed to keep the Dodgers from reaching double digits. The offense still charged him with six runs in six innings and steamed toward a sixth consecutive victory. Yasmani Grandal chipped in two solo home runs after Puig's shot.
The tiff extended an eventful fortnight for Puig. He flipped off two spectators in Cleveland last week and received a one-game suspension and is playing while his appeal winds through the system. He homered twice in one game over the weekend in Cincinnati. And he has upped his on-base-plus-slugging percentage from .711 on June 11 to .773 by Wednesday.
With the lineup rolling, Rich Hill (4-3) authored a quiet but encouraging outing. He remained unable to reach the sixth inning, exiting after five frames and 98 pitches. But he recovered from a first-inning stumble to strike out eight and hold the Mets to one run.
He unveiled a cut fastball to bolster his arsenal. He slipped from a bases-loaded jam in the fourth by striking out three batters in a row.
The performance by Hill hinted at the heights he touched in 2016, when he inspired the Dodgers to sign him to a three-year, $48 million contract in the offseason.
Hill bottomed out last week. During four innings in Cleveland, he gave up seven runs and looked aggravated on the mound.
Manager Dave Roberts suggested that Hill was allowing his intensity to compromise his ability. Hill countered that the real problem was unacceptable execution.
Whatever the explanation, Hill began Wednesday with his spot in the rotation in jeopardy.
Kenta Maeda returned to the bullpen as a long reliever for this series, but Maeda could be flexed back into a starting role whenever. Hill understood he needed to perform to maintain his place.
"We expect Rich to come out and attack the strike zone, and go pitch by pitch," Roberts said before the game. "He feels good _ everything physically, with the body, feels good. So now it's about performance."
The opening was not encouraging. On the second pitch of the game, outfielder Curtis Granderson whacked an 89-mph fastball over the center-field fence. On the next pitch, Flores doubled into left field on another fastball.
Hill managed to regroup. Using only fastballs, he struck out outfielder Yoenis Cespedes. He snapped a full-count curveball to freeze catcher Travis d'Arnaud to finish the inning. Hill struck out two more over the next two frames.
The Dodgers tied the score in the third. They did so without a hit.
Joc Pederson led off with a walk. Third baseman T.J. Rivera threw away a grounder hit by Puig. With runners at the corners, Hill lifted a 2-and-2 fastball into center field for a sacrifice fly. Hill drove in a run for the first time since June 19, 2009.
The fourth inning tested Hill's resolve.
He started the trouble with a leadoff walk to outfielder Jay Bruce. A single by d'Arnaud rolled past Chase Utley at second base. Utley cost Hill in the next at-bat, dropping a popup to load the bases with none out.
Hill used the cutter to wriggle free. He spun the pitch past shortstop Jose Reyes for one strikeout. He pumped it for two strikes to second baseman Gavin Cecchini before finishing the at-bat with an 89-mph four-seamer. Hill fooled Pill with curveballs to strand all three runners.
The offense rewarded Hill for maintaining the deadlock.
Cody Bellinger sparked a rally by smashing a double through the right side of the infield. Bellinger barreled into second base, which forced a wild throw by Bruce. Bellinger took third base on the error. He scored on a double by Logan Forsythe.
After a walk by Pederson, Puig came to the plate.
Pill missed inside with two fastballs. Puig swung through a changeup but took another. Down in the count, Pill hummed a fastball that bisected the plate. Puig did not miss.
No one would miss what happened next.
