SAN DIEGO (AP) — Shohei Ohtani homered on the first pitch of the game before throwing five sharp innings of three-hit ball in the Los Angeles Dodgers’ 4-0 victory over the San Diego Padres on Wednesday night.
Ohtani began another remarkable two-way performance by driving Randy Vásquez’s high fastball 398 feet to center for his eighth homer of the season and his 27th career leadoff homer.
On the mound, Ohtani (4-2) struck out four with two walks while lowering his ERA to 0.73 over eight starts. Four relievers completed LA’s five-hitter.
Ohtani immediately connected off Vásquez (5-2) for his 13th hit in 24 at-bats since the game before he was given a two-day break from hitting last week in a successful attempt to end a mini-slump.
Teoscar Hernández homered and drove in two runs for the Dodgers, who have won seven of eight after taking two of three at Petco Park in their first series of the season against their Southern California rivals.
Vásquez yielded six hits and three runs for the Padres, who lost the last two games after a four-game winning streak. San Diego scored just five runs in the series, getting shut out over the final 15 innings.
Ohtani retired the Padres’ first nine hitters, although he needed 52 pitches to do it. Fernando Tatis Jr. drew a leadoff walk in the fourth and Gavin Sheets singled, but Ohtani escaped the jam.
The Padres then loaded the bases with one out in the fifth, but the scuffling Tatis grounded into a double play on the next pitch, prompting a vocal celebration from Ohtani on the conclusion of his pitching night.
Max Muncy doubled in the second and scored on Hernández’s long flyout.
Ohtani then drew a leadoff walk from Vásquez in the fifth and eventually scored on Kyle Tucker’s single.
Hernández hit his sixth homer in the ninth inning.
Padres center fielder Jackson Merrill left the game in the fifth. The slumping slugger had crashed into the wall while attempting to steal Ohtani’s homer in the first, but kept playing.
Up next
Both teams have Thursday off. The Dodgers return Friday in Milwaukee with Justin Wrobleski (6-1, 2.49 ERA) on the mound, while Walker Buehler (3-2, 5.01 ERA) is expected to start when the Padres face the Athletics at Petco Park.
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