LOS ANGELES — Shohei Ohtani took the mound Wednesday night at Dodger Stadium and delivered exactly what the Dodgers needed: seven scoreless innings of dominant pitching to snap a four-game losing streak and keep momentum rolling into Thursday’s series finale. Ohtani struck out eight batters, walked none after the first inning, and gave Los Angeles a commanding performance in Game 3 of the four-game home set against San Francisco.
Shohei Locks In From the Third Inning On
It was not a flawless start from the jump. Ohtani walked Heliot Ramos to open the game and allowed a sharp single to Rafael Devers that put two runners on, but escaped the inning without giving up a run. From there, he was nearly untouchable.
Ohtani struck out the side in the fourth inning, getting Devers, Bryce Eldridge, and Willy Adames in order, to push his strikeout total to five through four. He issued a balk in the third that moved Luis Arraez to second, but again escaped without damage. By the time he departed after seven innings, he had piled up eight strikeouts, surrendered just four hits, and posted back-to-back outings of seven or more scoreless innings.
Ohtani will not be in the lineup on Wednesday as the Dodgers give him a scheduled day off and reset heading into the series finale.
Espinal and Betts Light the Fuse, Tucker Does the Rest
The Dodgers broke the game open in the third with a pair of home runs that came out of nowhere. Santiago Espinal hit his first of the season, a solo shot to left-center, and Mookie Betts followed with his third homer of the year on the very next at-bat. Just like that, Los Angeles had all the cushion it needed.
The fourth inning added two more runs to make it a comfortable night. Kyle Tucker doubled for the second time in as many at-bats and scored on a Teoscar Hernandez single. A sacrifice fly by Alex Call off Jung Hoo Lee in foul territory scored Hernandez and pushed the lead to 4-0, capping a two-inning stretch where the Dodgers turned Robbie Ray’s command issues into crooked numbers on the board.
Tucker finished 2-for-4 with two doubles and a run scored. Hernandez drove in a run and reached base twice. The offense was quiet outside of those two innings, stranding runners in scoring position in the second and leaving multiple on base in the fifth and eighth, but the early burst was enough.
Scott and Hurt Finish the Job
Tanner Scott inherited a clean eighth inning and worked through it without issue, allowing a single that was extended by a fielding error but escaping without damage. Kyle Hurt closed it out in the ninth, handling a Devers ground-rule double to open the inning by retiring the next three Giants in order.
The Giants threatened just once in the final two innings and could not capitalize, giving the Dodgers a clean sheet from the bullpen to complement Ohtani’s complete dominance.
Up Next
The Dodgers and Giants wrap up their four-game series at Dodger Stadium on Thursday night in the series finale, with Emmet Sheehan set to take the mound against Giants right-hander Landon Roupp. First pitch is scheduled for 7:10 p.m. PST.
