The Dodgers had a chance to finish off a sweep, but San Diego had other plans.
After being blanked on Saturday, the Padres answered with a 5-2 win Sunday, snapping a seven-game losing streak and keeping Los Angeles from closing out the series. San Diego did its damage in the middle and late innings, while the Dodgers’ comeback came up short despite a late push.
Emmet Sheehan and JP Sears both opened with clean, quiet first three innings, each allowing just one walk while neither side managed a hit. The deadlock finally broke in the fourth when Manny Machado drew a one-out walk, Gavin Sheets followed with a single to end the no-hit bid, and Jackson Merrill came through with a two-out RBI single to put San Diego up 1-0. Sheehan needed 28 pitches to escape the inning.
The Padres kept pressing in the fifth. Luis Campusano walked for the second time, Fernando Tatis Jr. ripped a double down the right field line, and Sheehan’s night ended after 4 1/3 innings and 96 pitches. Jack Dreyer stepped in and bailed the Dodgers out of a bases-loaded jam with two outs.
Even with the short outing, Sheehan’s recent work against San Diego has been sharp. He allowed just one run for the second straight start against the Padres, and his 1.94 ERA over his last two outings has trimmed his season mark to 4.91.
Sears, meanwhile, settled in after a rough start to his season. He came in with a 6.97 ERA over his first two starts, but Sunday was a different story. Miguel Rojas finally broke up the no-hit bid with a single up the middle in the fifth, yet Sears finished five scoreless innings for his best big league start since being acquired from the Athletics last year.
Los Angeles had a shot to turn things around in the sixth. Walks to the tying and go-ahead runners put pressure on Yuki Matsui, but Bradgley Rodriguez came in and got out of the inning without damage.
San Diego then slammed the door. Tatis added an RBI single in the seventh against Kyle Hurt, and Machado followed with a three-run homer to center to make it 5-0. It was Machado’s 26th home run as a Padre against his former club, moving him past Hall of Fame outfielder Dave Winfield for the most home runs hit against the Dodgers in franchise history.
The Dodgers did not go quietly. Singles from Alex Freeland and birthday boy Shohei Ohtani brought in a pair of runs, and Andy Pages stepped to the plate with two on and two out and a chance to pull the game even. Adrián Morejón won that battle, striking him out to end the threat.
Morejón stayed on for the eighth and kept Los Angeles in check, and Mason Miller finished off the side in order to send San Diego back into the win column for the first time since June 26.
Ohtani finished 1-for-3 with an RBI and a walk, but he couldn’t celebrate his birthday with a win. He’s now a career .138 hitter, 4-for-29, on his birthday.
Freddie Freeman’s on-base streak ended at 19 games after he went 0-for-4.
Eliezer Alfonzo also made his big league debut, going 0-for-2 before Tommy Edman pinch-hit for him in the bottom of the seventh.
In Other News...
Dodgers Are Paying For Their Spending Again In The 2026 Draft
The Dodgers habit of spending aggressively has finally come back around on them in draft form. Because they pushed past the Competitive Balance Tax surcharge threshold, their highest pick in 2026 gets knocked back 10 spots from where it would have landed naturally, and the bonus-pool hit leaves them with just $3,951,900 to work with, the smallest pool in baseball. For a front office that has often used financial muscle to widen its options, that is a meaningful squeeze.
Even so, there are still ways to find value if the board breaks right. Names like Virginia commit Bo Lowrance could come into play because of signability, while Logan Reddemann and Brody Bumila fit the kind of profile teams often monitor late in the first round and beyond when health questions or medical history start to push talented players down the board. For the Dodgers, the challenge is less about identifying talent than figuring out how far that talent might fall before the money and the pick slot finally line up. [Read more 🡒]
Dodgers Waste Dominant Start In Another Rockies Loss That Stings
Justin Wrobleski gave the Dodgers exactly what they needed on the mound, working seven strong innings while the offense did enough to build a cushion against Colorado. Shohei Ohtani also delivered a milestone moment in the opener of the series, and Andy Pages plus Alex Freeland helped push Los Angeles to three runs, the kind of support that usually makes a road trip feel manageable even when the margins are thin.
Instead, the game turned on one ugly defensive inning and left the Dodgers staring at another loss to a Rockies club they should have handled. The lead was in place late, the pitching line was there, and the bats had done their part, but a few misfires in the field erased all of it in a hurry and turned a solid night into one that will linger a while. [Read more 🡒]
Mookie Betts Just Said What Dodgers Fans Feel About Will Smith
Will Smith has been out since June 6 with a neck injury, and the Dodgers have spent the stretch leaning on Dalton Rushing behind the plate while he gets a crash course in the jobs less glamorous demands. Smith has started hitting and throwing again as he works his way back, but the full ramp-up still has a few boxes to check before he can even think about rejoining the lineup.
Mookie Betts, like plenty of Dodgers fans, has come away with a sharper appreciation for what Smith brings when he is healthy. Rushing has had the kind of learning moments that come with catching a major league staff, and the Dodgers are still waiting on the next steps in Smiths recovery before they can circle a more realistic return window, likely sometime in late July or early August. [Read more 🡒]