Josue De Paula’s first big league hit should have been the headline for the Dodgers on Sunday. Instead, it got swallowed up by a brutal finish.
The 21-year-old top prospect gave Los Angeles a jolt with a three-run homer in the fourth inning, the first hit of his career, but the Dodgers couldn’t protect the lead and fell to the Marlins, 6-4.
Emmet Sheehan did everything he could to keep the day pointed in the right direction. In his second appearance back with the club after a strong run in Triple-A, he stayed on track with the sharp form he showed a week earlier.
Sheehan worked six scoreless innings, giving up two hits and striking out five. In his previous start, he had gone 5.2 innings with 10 strikeouts and just one earned run allowed.
For a while, Los Angeles looked like it had the game under control despite a quiet start at the plate. De Paula was the only Dodger to reach base in the first two innings, and a chance to score in the third inning slipped away when a marginal ABS challenge sent Max Muncy down on strikes to end the frame with two runners on and two outs.
De Paula made sure the next chance didn’t go to waste. With two runners aboard and no outs in the fourth, he turned on a 2-2 fastball on the inside part of the plate and launched it 416 feet into the second deck in right field.
The homer was his first MLB hit, and it snapped a three-game stretch without a base knock.
After that, the game settled down again until the eighth, when the Marlins finally cracked through against Edgardo Henriquez. They loaded the bases with two singles and a walk, then Otto Lopez drove a single into center field to bring in two runs and cut the Dodgers’ lead to one.
Los Angeles answered in the top of the ninth. Alex Freeland singled and stole second, and Mookie Betts followed with a ground-rule double to bring home the Dodgers’ fourth run. The Dodgers then loaded the bases later in the inning but came up empty on the chance to add more insurance.
That missed opportunity loomed large once Tanner Scott entered for the ninth. The Marlins opened the inning with two singles, including one on a bunt, and Javier Sanoja ripped a double to score both runners and tie the game. Agustin Ramirez then ended it with a two-run homer.
The Dodgers return to action Monday against the Cincinnati Reds, with a four-game series set to begin at 3:40 p.m. PT.
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