The party is most definitely on in Chavez Ravine.
New Dodgers first baseman Adrian Gonzalez strutted to the plate to a rousing standing ovation in his first at-bat Saturday night at Dodger Stadium and connected for a three-run homer on the second pitch he saw from Marlins starter Josh Johnson.
The Dodgers lead 4-1 at the end of the first inning.
Gonzalez was acquired from the Red Sox in the nine-player blockbuster trade that was finalized this afternoon after getting the approval of Major League Baseball commissioner Bud Selig.
Gonzalez took a private jet from Boston to Los Angeles along with right-hander Josh Beckett and infielder Nick Punto, arriving at his new home park just a couple hours before first pitch.
Beckett is set to make his Dodgers debut Monday. Punto is on the bench tonight, serving as a utilityman.
Gonzalez is now batting .301/.345/.476 with 16 home runs and 89 RBI in 124 total games this season. We’ll track his activity the rest of the way as the Dodgers try to gain ground on the first-place Giants.
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UPDATE, 9:56 PM: Gonzalez struck out swinging in his second plate appearance of the evening. That’s baseball for you. The Dodgers lead the Marlins by a score of 5-2 at the end of the second inning.
UPDATE, 10:32 PM: Gonzalez struck out swinging again in his third at-bat. L.A. is up 6-2 in the fifth.
UPDATE, 11:04 PM: Gonzalez grounded out to first base in his fourth at-bat. The Dodgers lead 7-2.
UPDATE, 11:52 PM: Gonzalez popped out to center field in his fifth -- and probably final -- trip to the plate. The Dodgers will carry an 8-2 lead into the top of the ninth inning.
UPDATE, 12:01 AM: Yep, that’s it. Gonzalez goes 1-for-5 with a homer and three RBI in his first game with the Dodgers. Andre Ethier went 4-for-4 and Matt Kemp finished 3-for-5.