Hanley Ramirez’s 14th inning home run returns Dodgers to .500

And in the 14th inning, the Dodgers’ bats finally broke through.

Hanley Ramirez crushed the first pitch he saw from Josh Collmenter 15 rows into the right-field stands at Chase Field to break a five-inning deadlock. A.J. Ellis followed with a solo shot as the Dodgers rallied back to beat the National League West-leading Diamondbacks, 7-5.

With the win, they pull just 1 1/2 games behind Arizona and back to .500 for the first time since April 30. The Dodgers bullpen tossed eight scoreless innings as the Dodgers won their longest game since June 2, 2010 -- coincidentally a 1-0 victory over the Diamondbacks won on a Garrett Anderson single.

BOX SCORE: Dodgers 7, Arizona 5

It’s also the Dodgers’ first sweep of the Diamondbacks in two seasons.

Heading into the top of the ninth, the game appeared to be one the Dodgers would remember for missed opportunities. Ramirez’s two-run double in the fifth aside, the Dodgers were 1 for 7 with runners in scoring position.

But that all changed when Adrian Gonzalez worked a two-out, nine-pitch walk off Diamondbacks closer Heath Bell. Ramirez drove a single to center, then A.J. Ellis lined one of his own to left to tie the game at 5-5.

Forgotten was Scott Van Slyke’s bases-loaded, inning-ending double play in the fifth inning. Forgotten was Hyun-Jin Ryu’s worst start of the year (he gave up five runs and seven hits over five innings). Instead, Adrian Gonzalez’s solo home run in the seventh inning suddenly became a crucial play. So did the scoreless 6th, 7th and 8th innings pitched by J.P. Howell, Ronald Belisario and Jose Dominguez, respectively.

Ellis’ heroics -- a second act after cranking a game-winning, three-run homer in the Dodgers’ 4-1 win over the Giants on Sunday -- and Paco Rodriguez’s 1-2-3 ninth forced the extra innings.

While the Diamondbacks went hitless from the sixth inning through 11th, the Dodgers squandered baserunners in the 10th, 11th and 12th innings.

Their best chance came when Juan Uribe singled with one out in the 12th. Chris Withrow bunted him to second, but Aaron Hill sprawled out to snag a Carl Crawford ground ball to end the inning.

But Withrow and Kenley Jansen gave the Dodgers enough chances. Withrow, who entered the game having allowed runs in four of five appearances this season, threw three clean innings before Jansen tossed the last two.

The Dodgers have now won an MLB-best 15 of 18 heading into a four-game homestand with the Rockies on Thursday.