The Dodgers head into the All-Star break with the best kind of problem a contender can have: even after a 5-3 loss to the Arizona Diamondbacks on Sunday afternoon, they still sit at 61-36 and remain the only team in MLB with at leat 60 wins.
Los Angeles got its offense going early. Shohei Ohtani opened the game with his 22nd home run of the season, a 437-foot blast, and Tommy Edman added a two-run hit in the third. But that was it for the Dodgers’ scoring, and the game settled down quickly after the third inning.
Emmet Sheehan gave them a strong enough start to keep things in reach, striking out seven over 5.1 innings while allowing two earned runs on three hits. He worked through a 14-pitch battle to start the game before getting a strikeout, then came right back and punched out the side in the first on just eight pitches.
The bullpen didn’t completely shut the door, either. Edgardo Henriquez was charged with an unearned run and took the loss, while Brock Stewart, Tanner Scott and Evan Phillips combined to allow two hits and an earned run the rest of the way.
There was also a notable update on Kiké Hernández, whose return timeline has now been revealed. Hernández missed the start of 2026 while recovering from elbow surgery, briefly returned for two games at the end of May, and then went back on the injured list with an oblique injury.
Ohtani, meanwhile, apologized to fans after it was announced he would miss the All-Star Game because of his knee injury.
“I feel bad for the fans who voted for me,” Ohtani said. “I think they voted for me because they wanted to see me play and I feel bad that I can’t. I regret that I have to drop out after being voted in.”
There was at least one encouraging sign on the pitching side, too. Manager Dave Roberts said he sees clear progress from Roki Sasaki, who has dealt with recent struggles on the mound.
“I think there’s improvement,” Roberts said. “I do think that from the outset of the season to as we sit here, he’s a grade and a half better than what he was when he started the season.”
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