CHICAGO -- One talent evaluator who has been shadowing the Los Angeles Dodgers for the past several days noted the team's body language in recent games and wondered whether tales of the team's lack of chemistry might be entirely apt.
In the next breath, though, he marveled, "They're so darn talented, you could still see them getting in [the postseason] and doing some damage."
The Dodgers might not be the grittiest little team in baseball. They may not work in perfect harmony most of the time. But give them an inch of rope and foes usually regret it.
L.A. got a key error from the Cubs at Wrigley Field on Thursday, and then swarmed all over Chicago for a come-from-behind 8-4 victory. It was something of a landmark for a team that has tended to fold its tent and move on to the next site when things aren't going well.
The Dodgers scored five times in the seventh inning after Cubs second baseman Logan Watkins dropped what looked like a sure inning-ending double-play ball. It was only the second time in 56 games this season the Dodgers won a game they were trailing after six innings.
The Dodgers' general lack of scrappiness became a topic of discussion afterward, one that manager Don Mattingly wanted no part of.
"I'm not listening to that," Mattingly said, smiling. "Don't even do it. It's not working. Not going to do it tonight. We've got nine games left. We won a game tonight; we came from behind.
"Honestly, it didn't look very good early, and it ended good. This time of year, you walk away with a W, you feel good about it."
If anything, it has appeared lately as if the Dodgers have enough talent revving on idle that they can turn their engine on and off when needed.
They got blown out Friday by the Giants, then woke up and played two of their best games of the season to launch them from the San Francisco Bay Area with a staunch little lead over their NL West rivals.
They got some awful pitching at altitude and gave up 26 runs the previous two days in Colorado. On Thursday, they again were staring at an early hole. When Zack Greinke got in trouble from the jump and gave up two first-inning runs, even Mattingly said he was "thinking of Colorado early."
But Greinke buckled down a bit, fighting himself to get through five innings in 112 pitches. The Dodgers' bullpen was a lot better than it had been against the Rockies, and the offense proved resourceful.
The ability to rally when down probably is not a bad trick to have in your bag. The Dodgers don't have much time left, so they had better be quick studies if they're going to master it.
"Pulling this one out is almost like stealing a win," Greinke said. "You don't do that very often. It's not very common."
Told it was just two times this season, Greinke said, "Really?"
"I guess sometimes teams get on rolls. One had like six walk-off hits in a week and a half or something," Greinke added. "So, sometimes, maybe doing it does get you going."
The Dodgers, still holding a 2½-game lead and zeroing in on clinching a postseason berth, don't necessarily need heroics in these final nine games, but it's never bad to flash a little versatility.