Dodger fans had barely settled in their seats before they were stunned by the Padres scoring three runs off of Yamamoto. The big blow was a 2-run homer by Dodger nemesis Manny Machado. A walk to Betts and a single by Freeman got the fans hopes up in the bottom of the inning, but Teo hit into a force play and Muncy struck out. Yoshi had a clean second inning. In the bottom of the second, Smith walked and Lux singled. Edman struck out, and Rojas popped out. That brought-up Ohtani who hit a rocket into the right field seats tying the game.
Yamamoto could not hold the lead though. The Padres came back and scored 2 in the top of the third. Yamamoto would leave after the inning was over. He gave up a leadoff double to Tatis. Profar popped out and Machado flied out. Merrill walked and then Bogaerts hit a double down the line scoring both runners. In the bottom of the inning, Freeman singled, then stole second, but he was left stranded as Teo, Max and Smith made outs.
Brasier came in to pitch the fourth and gave up just a double to Higashioka. In the bottom of the fourth, Lux grounded out and Edman bunted for a single. Rojas singled to left. Morejon replaced Cease and Ohtani then singled off of him. With Betts up, Morejon threw a wild pitch and Edman scored making it 5-4. They walked Betts intentionally. Freeman hit a ball to Solano who threw home to force out Rojas. Estrada replaced Morejon. Teo then singled to left scoring Ohtani and Betts. Dodgers up 6-5.
Through the next 2 innings the bullpen kept the Padres at bay. Ine the bottom of the fifth, the Dodgers scored an insurance run. Smith got aboard on an error by Machado. Lux singled and Smith went to third. Edman hit into a double play and Smith scored. Rojas struck out to end the inning. That would be the end of the scoring. LA fans got a scare in the 8th when Kopech came in. Profar walked and Machado struck out. Merrill then walked and Roberts brought in Treinen to replace Kopech.
Bogaerts popped out, then Cronenworth walked loading the bases. Treinen then struck out Solano to end the inning. The Dodgers got a single from Edman, Rojas popped out on a bunt. Ohtani struck out and they walked Betts. Freeman then struck out. In the top of the 9th, Treinen went back out to try and complete a 5-out save. He struck out Diaz and Arraez lined out to Lux. Then things got a little sticky. Tatis singled and Profar walked. Treinen then struck out Machado to end the game. Brasier got the win, Treinen the save. The loss went to Morejon. Ohtani, Lux, Freeman, and Edman all had 2 hits. The Dodgers had 10 as a team and drew 5 walks. They struck out 9 times and were 4-16 with men in scoring position and they left 8 men on base. 5 of their 7 runs were earned.
Great game #1 win. Ten more to go. Flaherty hopefully can go 5 or 6 innings tomorrow. Treinen cannot go tomorrow but I believe the Kopech, Philllips, Vesia and Brasier can go at least one inning.
Kopeck threw 22 pitches, so I’m not sure about him. But, I’m sure the adrenaline was pumping hard throughout his body last night, so hopefully he will calm down a bit and locate better.
I would like to apologize to VESIA for any comments I made that did not reflect positivity toward him this year. He has made me eaten my words and I’m glad to admit-I spoke too soon and too flippantly. You have been a BEAST all season. I love to watch your passion after throwing a good pitch. You are the man! Keep it up. -TM
Shohei is THE MAN. The Dodgers will go as far as he can carry them.
Please go 6 innings in tomorrow’s game Mr. Flaherty. ….please.
Teo was clutch too.
Yup, Teo had clutch hits and drove in runs. And there’s something about Edman. He’s got “it.” His play just exudes positive vibes. Not overly-talented, but he maximizes everything he has on the field.
Edman wasn’t great tonight. but I’m convinced he will come up big in this series.
What ? 2 base hits, sb and flawless in CF.
Go Dodgers!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Exactly, ram!
What does it take to be great?
Probably a clutch home run or bases loaded double. LOL.
The entire team was. Big hits from edman and lux too. Mookie walked three times. Freddie notching two hits and a steal on a bad ankle. The bullpen was fantastic.
As usual.
teo has been clutch all year but he gets over shadowed by the top three in the line up.
Huge win for the Dodgers. A gutsy performance.
If this continues I will run out of my heart pills before Monday! 😀
Great win, important for the team to get off to a winning start in the postseason.
Team showed great resiliency after falling down immediately by 3 runs.Othani energized them and the crowd with his 3 run shot when they needed it the most.
Bullpen absolutely nails even if they made it nerve wrecking in the 8th and 9th.
I noticed that Treinen was hitting 97 mph which is an increase of 2-3 mph over the regular season. He and Brasier going both 1.2 innings was huge.
Lux was great at the dish and in the field. Clutch defensive play late.
Go Dodgers!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
One more thing: Doc managed a very good game. Taking out Kopech for Treinen quickly probably saved that game. Kopech just did not have it this day.
Go Dodgers!!!!!!!!!!!1
What has happened here? Complementing Robert’s in game moves? How are we gonna fire him if this continues? What a game! Playoff intensity from start to finish.We can bring the hammer down tonight if Flaherty is on his game. 5-2 Dodgers
Agree. Roberts made all the right moves tonight. Of course they were successful but either way it was huge bringing Treinen in. To stay with him tells u he didn’t have confidence to bring Hudson or Henriquez in at that time. Unfortunately Treinen will be out a couple of days which means Hudson needs to perform. Really Shildt has to be questioned for pitching to Ohtani and walking Betts. Betts had 2 strikes. Freeman got 2 hits so u can’t complain but I really think with runners on he is a dp candidate. He hits too many ground balls.
Clearly, the Padres were not aware of Mookie’s post season stats. If they had been aware, I’m sure their strategy would have been different.
I’m an unashamed Doc apologist, but I have to admit once in a while he frustrates me too.
Too much adrenaline I suppose. I’m not sure how many playoff games in front of the world he has pitched in. Hopefully, he will calm it down next time.
That was a little unDoc of him to pull Kopech so quick, his usual MO is to let the pitchers that have doing well have a little longer leash, glad he made that adjustment in that spot. Maybe an old Doc can learn a new trick
The “relief” of victory.
Man that was tense. I had a tough time falling asleep. And USC’s failure didn’t help. UCLA lost too but that was expected.
Perusing the box score – Yamamoto was awful, the bullpen was great. Bottom of the order all had hits, team 4 for 16 WRISP. That is a lot of at bats with runners in scoring position. Betts, Muncy and Smith all 0fer but Betts and Smith with 5 base on balls between them. If I’m the Padres I don’t walk Betts until he proves he can hit.
I noticed Teo wasn’t given an error for that ball that went through him. Home field scoring? It was an error.
Edman hit RH against a RHP. I’ve been thinking he should do more of that. He’s a terrible LH hitter, though that was a nice bunt. If he could go oppo more often he might could hit .250 left handed.
This team is obviously Ohtani led. He does what he does, they will win more than they lose. I’m hoping Betts and Muncy snap out of it, Freddie can hang in there, and the starting pitching can go 5.
Great beginning. Finish it.
Not to be the negative Nelly here but we won Game 1 vs the Padres 2 years ago too only to lose the next 3. Dodgers have to keep their focus, their intensity and their determination. Padres will not roll over easily.
Hopefully Flaherty has a gem in him tonight. Going up 2-0 would be HUGE!
Go Dodgers!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I think the blast radius from Ohtani’s bombs, reaches at least San Diego in the Division race. Ohtaniism will become the new dynastic religion, after we sweep up the East Coast and demand they take the knee. The rising sun still lives.
Great win and completely relieved we survived Yakatori’s start, but should I really feel that good if we had to just survive his start? Obviously the Dodgers felt he was our best option to start Game 1 after a 5 day rest but geez!
This is going to be a tough road ahead, bully is going to have to pitch lights out. HOwever, I do expect Walker to re-emerge as our real ace during the playoffs (he had better or we are in trouble).
OHtani is really on an amazing tear.
Bullpen working makes Roberts a genius (and maybe he was, he did change up his use of the bully and allow pitchers to pitch more than 1 inning).
The pitching more than one inning does concern me, but maybe with the travel days, such as they are with a hundred miles between cities, the extra days might be enough. Flaherty going 6 and a 4 run lead when he leaves would be helpful.
Vesia, brasier, and Phillips all had low pitch counts. They had 13, 20, and 14 respectively. Kopech had 22 so they should all be good today. Treinen with 39 is gone for awhile.
Need Flaherty to provide 5-6 quality innings today to give us a good shot at winning Game 2.
Go Dodgers!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!1
In the playoffs one must stay in the present. The present called for Treinen to go two innings. Take care of tomorrow when the time comes. Treinen will be ready for game 3 if needed. Ohtani was great. It’s a good when he has to be pitched too because of Betts and Freeman. Freddy showed what kind of a competitor he is especially when he stoled second. For him to even be playing at this level for what he’s gone through with his ankle and son, etc. shows his character. Long way to go and a short time to get there. I love this team.
Stoled second?
seriously?
Of course you have never made a typo Mr Pedantic.
Let’s see if I spell this correctly: asshole!
Lol
Spelling was correct, it’s the usage that was wrong
The game went much like most thought. Questionable, at best, starting pitching. Solid results from the bullpen. Ohtani and some offense from the other superstars. Ohtani. The once, highly criticized, bottom of the order came through big time. The team succeeded in employing the “Badger rule” in winning the game. With recent run production in the playoffs, Badger’s rule of needing to score 7-8 runs in order to win, seemed unlikely. But, they came through. Let’s hope that continues for at least another 10 games.
A very entertaining game. If they can continue to produce close to last night’s offensive output I’ll be fine with that. That should be enough to win a World Series. Even with this production, the biggest obstacle is their starting pitching.
Regardless, it will be fun to watch.
Csrry on
A note on Kershaw not coming back at all this year. I am sure this is not how CK wants his career to end. But the only way it can continue is if he has off-season surgery to fix his toe. And he has not made that decision yet. Both Verlander and Scherzer have said they are going to pitch next year. Will CK do the same or does he finally call it quits?
I think Kersh will come back in 2025 for one last year. I don’t think he wants to go out like this and he wants 3,000 strike outs.
Every pro athlete wants to go out “his way.” Father Time usually doesn’t allow it.
I find this curious considering how long Darvish has been in the league, only five current Dodgers have had at-bats against Darvish, Betts, Smith, Freeman, Muncy and Lux. Freeman and Muncy have tagged him for homers. No Dodger has more than 3 at bats against him. Even more curious is that none of the Padres have faced Flaherty. Maybe these stats are just from this season. Weird.
I’m not a fan of this new playoff format where top seeds get so much time off, I believe it hurts more than it helps, but it sure did benefit the Dodger bull pen, those guys looked great last night. Now if we can get a couple of decent, not even great, just decent starts, from our starters, I’m hoping the bull pen can carry us through.
I am not sure where your batters against came from. It cannot be just from this year, because Flaherty did pitch against SD this year (09-25-24). Here are the batters against Darvish and Flaherty.
Thanks for posting these numbers, Jeff.
After thorough analysis, I’ve decided not to watch tonight’s game because we’re going to lose 10-0.
Unless we can have Edman hit in all 9 spots.
You were close. The Dodgers lost 10-2.
It did not take much effort to go out on a limb and say that Ohtani and Teo were going to be difference makers in the series. No, Yoshi Yamamoto did not have his good command. But as off as he was, so was SD Ace Dylan Cease. So if it was the Dodger bats that were so good, why cannot it not be that the Padres bats were also good.
Yamamoto had a horrible Game 1 in the 2023 Japan Series. He came back in Game 6 to tie the series with a brilliant complete game, allowing 1 run, no BB, and 14 K. Japanese pitchers do pitch once a week, but the number of pitches are not as much of a concern. He is still coming off a shoulder injury, but maybe he should have been allowed to go more than 71 pitches in his last start in Colorado, working more on his command. Do I think he was unlucky? NO, He got his butt kicked. I do agree with John Smoltz that he was trying to get too many swing and misses with the breaking stuff when it was clear it was not working, while his fastball was. I believe in the old adage, if you are going to get beat, get beat with your best stuff. There was not one hard hit ball on his 4-seamer, but every one of his offspeed/breaking balls had 100+MPH against it. Why force something that was not there.
But I do believe it will be there his next outing. Some will say that will be Game 5 NLDS, I say Game 1 NLCS.
I understand why Mookie was walked intentionally. After the Morejon WP, that put runners on 2nd and 3rd, Schildt had a choice. Continue to pitch to Mookie. This was Schildt’s thinking:
“Mookie, against lefties, is not going to hit ground balls,” Shildt explained. “He’s not going to strike out, pretty much. And he’s going to walk. So now you can sit there and say, ‘Eh, let’s tap dance around him.’ No, let’s go to Freddie [Freeman] with Morejon, who throws a 50 percent ground-ball rate against lefties.”
It actually worked. LHRP Morejon got the ground ball and the force at the plate. Teoscar was not going to face the LHRP, so Schildt brought in a highly effective RHRP, Jeremiah Estrada. Estrada is a big strikeout pitcher, and Teo was not going to let Estrada work him. Teo swung at the first strike and got the 2-out 2-run single into RF.
The only batter not to reach base was Max Muncy. He was my dark horse difference maker, and he still might be. However, he is going to need to change his approach.
1sr AB – Runners on 1st and 3rd, 2 outs — K.
2nd AB – Runner on 2nd, 1 out — Fly out F7. A non-productive out.
3rd AB – Runners on 1st and 3rd, 2 outs — K.
4th AB – Nobody on — Fly out F8.
That is 5 runners LOB, 2 in scoring position. Quit trying to hit a ball 600 feet from your knees WRSIP, especially with 2 strikes.
I do not know of a perfect game. This was a well-played game with LAD’s two strengths (hitting and bullpen) coming through. I fully expect Yamamoto to bounce back, and I am hopeful that Muncy will find a way. But you cannot get too upset when your 6-9 batters reach base 7-16 with 5 hits and 2 walks. Your turn the lineup over 4 full times in 8 innings after facing a legit Ace and a standout bullpen. Ohtani, Betts, and Freeman each had 5 PA.
I need your opinion on something Jeff. I was going to ask in an email but I might as well share it with the group. I’ll try to be brief.
The splitter is known to be hard on the elbow. I don’t know why that is but it must have something to do with unnatural pressures put on the ligaments. I’m curious if it is easier on larger hands. That’s my first question. My second question is would a Vulcan grip splitter be easier on the ligaments? On my hand the natural spread between my middle fingers is larger than between my forefinger and middle finger. I’ve attempted a splitter before, though when I threw it it was called a forkball, but I’ve never attempted a Vulcan grip pitch. Thoughts?
Jumping in with a question. Wouldn’t a Vulcan grip result in less speed versus the typical split finger grip with the same stress on the arm/elbow?
Yes and no.
I’ve been throwing it in my living room with a styrofoam baseball. It actually feels pretty not too bad. Two seam grip comes out of the hand just fine. I think I could throw it for strikes. Not sure what the movement would look like but yeah, it’s an off speed pitch. Kinda like a circle change maybe.
I agree that Yoshi was trying to force them to hit his other pitches rather than going with his fastball more, since it was obviously far more effective.
Question: who was calling pitches? YY? Smith? The bench?
Maybe someone other than the pitcher was responsible for the poor pitch selection.
There is a pre game meeting with Yamamoto/Smith/Barnes/Prior/McGuiness to discuss sequencing for each hitter. It is clear that the message was to throw the breaking ball more, and that would be okay if he was landing it. His command was so off with everything but his fastball. Smith is calling the pitches and probably sticking with the game plan, but Yamamoto can shake it off. I did not see Yamamoto shake off Smith at all. Padres do not chase, so IMO Yamamoto and Smith needed to adjust to Yamamoto’s poor command.There could be discussions between innings to discuss whether Yamamoto is getting closer to land his breaking pitches. If he thinks he is close, Smith is sticking to the plan.
Now we are hearing that he was tipping his pitches. I think he comes back and has a good game next time he pitches.
Pitchers, and pitching coaches, pretty much know what’s working and what’s not working in pre-game warmups. If that hasn’t changed by the first few pitches then forcing it sounds dumb to me.
Roberts mentioned after the game that Yamamoto may have been tipping pitches (aka Devin Williams), hopefully fixable.
muncy looked poor, but he was hitting so well going into the playoffs.
thanks to the above explanation of the IBB. Very non-stat headed move. Glad it didn’t work out.
Well it worked, just not as good as the Padres had hoped. Freddie did hit a ground ball as they expected, but it resulted only in a force out at the plate. Not getting the DP allowed Teoscar to hit, and that worked out for LAD.
MUncy seems to be swinging and missing a lot. He can get hot but he is at his best when he works the count and either walks or forces the guy to throw him a mistake pitch. Instead he isn’t working the count and expanding his strike zone and swinging at garbage. He should leave the bat on his shoulder until he gets 2 strikes, much more effective over a series when he uses that strategy.
According to some reports that is exactly what the Dodgers think he was doing. But tipped or not, you can’t hang a pitch like that to Machado. Right in his wheelhouse.
What?!?
Yamamoto hung several pitches. He got lucky it wasn’t worse. Couldn’t land the curve and was hanging the splitter or couldn’t get it close enough to be competitive. 2 terrible pitches to Machado and Bogarts. There were others. He just doesn’t impress me most of the time. I thought the report on him is he is a strike thrower. He seems to struggle every time out just to throw strikes much less command. He had a great game against the Yankees but that was months ago. Since he has been back he just hasn’t been sharp. For this year Imanaga was much better. Yamamoto is small in stature. looks rather delicate. If he is the star the Dodgers paid for now is the time.
In a follow-up to the Royals – Yankees “hard” playing post of a couple of days ago, I stole this factoid from another board to show another way the game has profoundly changed:
In the 1963 World Series and again in 1966, the Dodgers only rostered 9 pitchers.
That is an amazing fact, Bluto
We need Max to show up tonite and hit. If Muncy and ohtani hit that means runs for the team but when max doesn’t hit and strikeout that hurts every rally seems to stall because runners on and max strikesout. And flarethy hS to go six inningsif he doesn’t that’s bad news for us because taht meas the Padres are scoring runs if he doesn’t go six innings. Betts needs to get hit Teo and Smith I don’t know wants wrong with Freeman but seems like he is slumping but if all five hit we should win tonite if they don’t then that has me worried have to get game two tonite. With Buehler And Knack pitching game 3 and 4 in San Diego must get game 2 tonite.
Bradley, did you happen to watch the game? If you did, you must have awfully high expectations. Freeman was 2 -5. That with a severe ankle sprain. Teo had a clutch hit for 2 rbi. Smith walked twice and scored both times. Sure Betts could use some hits, but walked three times. Come on, man!
And, not to be an ass, but how about a period thrown in once in a while. It’s usually hard to make sense of your posts without them. Thanks.
Carry on.
Did the long layoff hurt Philly, or is NYM just playing amazing right now?
I choose the 2nd theory; Mets are hot and do not quit
Annnd, so much for that!
Mets are insane right now! October baseball is just so much fun!
Looks like it could be a long night with John Libka as plate umpire. Flaherty struck out Profar twice and did not get the call.
What a dick move by Profar in the outfield (letting Mookie run the bases thinking he has a HR). Padres really don’t want to be liked, do they? Comes naturally to them.
Profar is a dick!!! Our fans should have wrestled the ball away. If in the stands there is no interference.
If me or any of my baseball buddies are in those stands I promise you Profar doesn’t make that catch.
Gotta score 8.
The starting pitching is horrendous. They give up minimum 3-4 runs in the first 2 innings every game.
On another note, the padres are a nasty despicable club.
I’ll make this short because it’s during the game. Good win yesterday. Good hitting and a good bullpen is a good combination. Flaherty is prone to giving up home runs as he is today. Same goes for Knack and Buehler. Buehler was great before his injury, so there’s hope for him.
I don’t know why Doc put Flaherty out there for the sixth inning. Go with your strength and your strength is the bullpen.
That’s one run that might not have happened if Doc went to the bullpen instead of allowing Flaherty to start the sixth inning.
The Padres have to be the most arrogant team in MLB. Profar with a dick move on the catch to rob Betts and Tatis with that stutter step at 3B on his HR.
1 – The problem with this bad starting pitching is these are the 2 best guys the Dodgers have. Yikes!
2 – Great win yesterday. Teamwide effort. Will require the same today.
3 – Can Mookie get a hit this year?
4 – Bases loaded, no out – only 1 run?
5 – I hope someone’s up in the bullpen. I hope it’s not Grove
Mookie now 3-42 in the last three season post games. He’s due for a big moment.
Lots of bad luck with hard hit balls, i figure they will soon turn into hits (or in Mookie’s car, homers,)
Profar is bitching about a fan throwing a ball at him. Well guess what, he asked for it for being a dick. (Showboater)
We can’t hit his off speed stuff even when we know it’s coming. He can’t throw his fast ball for a strike. Unbelievable
Really has the feeling of 2022. Buehler and Knack don’t exactly give me much hope of a game 5
It’s one game, but any game the team doesn’t score big the chances of winning against the better teams are not good. Pitching is our weakness. Everyone knows it.
Can’t expect the bullpen to be perfect. I DON’T blame Doc for bringing in Brasier because Brasier is one of the best relievers on the team.
Doc has definitely given up on this game because he brought in Grove.
The Mookie Magic Act. He is really is good at vanishing in October,
is anyone surprised by this pathetic showing?
Maybe if we’re lucky Mookie will decide to go on the pro bowling tour next year. Hopefully for him they don’t have a season ending tournament in October.
He’s certainly good at racking up strikes in October.
Those that are surprised are either not paying attention or are in denial of the Dodgers pitching reality.
Why Brasier?
He pitched yesterday.
Why not Henriquez and his triple-digit heat?
Easy to say in hindsight, but haven’t we been waiting for Roberts to use a rookie he described as “a weapon”?
Using Brasier at that point tells me Doc gave up on that game early.
Bleh
There’s your weapon!
?
Starting pitching, bullpen, offense, and defense. Last night we got 3 out of 4. Tonight only 1(defense). Starter, bullpen, and offense all sucked.
Now we see what this team is made of