Dodgers get out to a blazing start with a win over the PadresAugust 7 – Amed Rosario blasted a two-run homer in the first inning, and Freddie Freeman capped a four-run second inning with a three-run blast as the Los Angeles Dodgers beat the San Diego Padres 8-2 on Sunday.
Lance Lynn (8-9) improved to 2-0 as a Dodger, allowing only Gary Sanchez’s solo home run over six innings.
Rich Hill, who made his Padres debut after being acquired from Pittsburgh at the trade deadline along with first baseman/designated hitter Ji Man Choi, gave up six runs on four hits and a walk in three innings in his shortest start of 2023. The left-hander, 43, dropped to 7-11.
Hill was in imminent difficulty, despite nearly getting out of the first and second innings.
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Hill hit Freeman with a pitch after retiring Mookie Betts on a fly to center to start the game before striking out J.D. Martinez and leaping ahead of Rosario with two quick strikes. But on a 0-2 fastball, the Dodgers’ second baseman went the other way, barely clearing the seats in right for his fifth homer.
Enrique Hernandez led off the Dodgers’ second inning with a single and advanced to third on Miguel Rojas’ one-out single. Austin Barnes tried to squeeze Hernandez, but Choi collected the bunt and threw to Sanchez for the obvious out. However, the Dodgers filed an appeal, and Hernandez was ruled safe because Sanchez obstructed the plate before he got the ball, making the score 3-0.
After Betts drove Barnes to second, Freeman finished a 10-pitch duel with Hill by hitting a full-count curve 371 feet to right, scoring Rojas and Betts.
Lynn allowed one run (Sanchez’s 433-foot homer, his 15th of the season) on four hits, two walks, and six strikeouts. Lynn is 2-0 in two starts for the Dodgers after being acquired from the White Sox, allowing four runs on nine hits and three walks while striking out 13 batters in 13 innings.
The Padres trimmed the deficit to 6-2 in the eighth inning when Jake Cronenworth homered off Ryan Brasier. However, Mookie Betts launched his 30th home run of the season in the eighth inning, putting an end to right-hander Pedro Avila’s (4 2/3 bullpen stint for the Padres). Hernandez drove in the last run for the Dodgers.