Dee Gordon of the Los Angeles Dodgers Photo: AFP

A contentious triple-play allowed the league-leading Los Angeles Dodgers to celebrate Jackie Robinson Day in style with a 5-4 victory over the San Diego Padres on Sunday. 

Dee Gordon delivered a two-out walk-off single in the bottom of the ninth inning to give the Dodgers a three-game sweep against the Padres, but it was what happened in the top of the final inning that allowed the home team to survive. 

San Diego had two base-runners with no outs when Jesus Guzman bunted what appeared to be a foul ball. While the Padres players all stopped, Dodgers catcher A.J. Ellis picked up the ball and fired it to third base for the stop of a triple-play, the Dodgers' first since 1998. 

Padres manager Bud Black was ejected for arguing the play. 

"I heard it hit the bat and I was 100 percent confident it was a bunted ball," Ellis later told the reporters.  

"I wanted to make sure it was fair before I picked it up and we started throwing it around the infield." 

Matt Kemp went 3-for-4 and hit his fourth home run during the three-game series as the Dodgers (9-1) took a 4-1 lead.

Reigning Cy Young winner Clayton Kershaw was charged with three runs to San Diego (2-8) in the sixth to finish five-and-one-third innings of a no-decision. 

Both teams wore No.42, along with the rest of Major League Baseball, in observance of Robinson breaking baseball's racial barrier in 1947 for the Brooklyn Dodgers. 

But Los Angeles had additional reasons to celebrate as they tied their best start to a season. 

"I'd like to say I thought we were going to go off 9-1, but I can't say that," Dodgers manager Don Mattingly told reporters. 

"You're going to have to win (so) many games to make the playoffs. Every game you win now is one you don't necessarily have to win later."

Reuters - Global Times