The Los Angeles Dodgers failed to strike first after dropping the first contest of their three-game series opener against the San Diego Padres 4-2 on Tuesday but made sure to even the score on Wednesday night by defeating their division rivals 4-3.
The Dodgers (94-64) ignited the spark that could lead to a major rally down the stretch of the last four games of the 2024 MLB season as they look to not only clinch the National League West division crown in their series finale over the Padres (91-67), who are three games back in the standings but also claim the top spot in the entire NL with the Philadelphia Phillies (94-65) breathing down their neck at only 0.5 games back.
There were several positives to take away from Los Angeles’ win over San Diego and some causes for them to pause and address as the playoffs loom.
Dodgers’ bullpen took care of business in the final four innings
The Dodgers’ relievers inherited a 3-3 tie entering the sixth inning. Dodgers reliever Alex Vesia only allowed one batter in Xander Bogaerts — who he walked — to get on base in the sixth. Vesia also cught Bogaerts stealing second later in the inning, but overall, allowed sluggers to connect on his pitches and line out to center and left field (Manny Machado and Jackson Merrill) and to walk more often then he may have liked, but he kept the Padres from getting on the board nonetheless.
Fernando Tatis Jr. prevented Blake Treinen from striking out the side in the eighth inning with a line out to left field, and after Treinen made quick work of him, Machado and Jurickson Profar, Michael Kopech closed the show, only walking Jake Cronenworth. The bullpen did their job by protecting a narrow 4-3 lead that Shohei Ohtani’s RBI single created in the bottom of the sixth inning and positioned L.A. to add a much-needed in the throes of their battle for favorable playoff seeding.
Causing Dylan Cease’s dominance to cease
The Dodgers’ batting order played well against one of the premier pitchers in all of baseball in Padres righty Dylan Cease. Considering the fact that Cease is third in the Majors in strikeouts (224) and was 3-1 in his previous four starts heading into Wednesday night’s action, the Dodgers were able to make good against the NL Cy Young award candidate.
L.A.’s big three of Ohtani, Mookie Betts, and Freddie Freeman all batted .283 or better, while the former and the latter both put forth two hits on the day. Ohtani, Gavin Lux and Teoscar Hernandez all picked up RBIs on the day as well. While four runs is not what the juggernaut Dodgers are expected to produce on a game-by-game basis, they played well against an elite arm and limited him to only five innings on the mound.
Too close for comfort on the scoreboard
Though Dodgers starter Jack Flaherty continued on the tear he’s been on, he did not help L.A. create a cushion on the scoreboard in the five innings he played and allowed Tatis Jr. to hit a home run on his watch in the fifth inning, making this back-to-back games where he’s allowed homers in after going three straight without doing so.
As a unit, the Padres have had the Dodgers’ number all season long. Though Los Angeles has now made the season series 8-4 in favor of San Diego, the one-run margin of victory may not have generated ample momentum for them to close out the series in convincing fashion on Thursday night. Nevertheless, a win is a win, and when the Dodgers put forth a well-rounded performance from a pitching and hitting standpoint, it’s reason to feel good as the playoffs loom.