The Dodgers scored only twice in the first 14 innings of this weekend series at Petco Park. But then they erupted for a nine-run sixth inning to blow things open in a 15-3 win over the San Diego Padres on Saturday night.
Freddie Freeman hit another double — his fourth in five games on the road trip, and 568th of his career — and Tommy Edman tripled to get things going in the sixth, but then three home runs provided a huge cushion.
Kyle Tucker missed nearly three full games with back spasms this week but in reality has been missing for about a month, hitting just .181/.277/.281 with a 60 wRC+ over 25 games from May 25 through Friday. On Saturday he had three hits, including a two-run home run and a two-run single.
Dalton Rushing immediately followed with a solo shot, then Mookie Betts hit a three-run shot to cap the scoring in the frame, his third game in a row with a home run.
The Dodgers hadn’t scored nine runs in an inning since 2021, but they’ve now done it three times in their laast 19 games — nine-run first inning on June 6 against the Angels, 10 runs in the seventh on June 9 in Pittsburgh, then a nine-run sixth Saturday in San Diego.
Through six innings, this was only a 1-1 game, and the kind of support Yoshinobu Yamamoto has been used to over the last few years. But the eruption in the sixth was probably the only reason he wasn’t asked to go out for a seventh inning. He settled for two runs over six innings with four strikeouts, the 13th time in 15 starts Yamamoto has lasted at least six frames.
Saturday particulars
Home runs: Kyle Tucker (7), Dalton Rushing (9), Mookie Betts (11); Gavin Sheets (13)
WP — Yoshinobu Yamamoto (8-5): 6 IP, 5 hits, 2 runs, 2 walks, 4 strikeouts
LP — Randy Vásquez (6-6): 3 1/3 IP, 8 hits, 7 runs (5 earned), 1 walk, 1 strikeout
Up next
Emmet Sheehan is on the mound on Sunday (1:10 p.m., SportsNet LA), as the Dodgers face Padres ace Michael King in the series finale.
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