PHILADELPHIA — The Dodgers’ unbeaten start to the season ended with a whimper.
Held to just two hits in seven innings by left-hander Jesus Luzardo, the Dodgers rallied late but suffered their first loss of the season, 3-2, to the Philadelphia Phillies on Friday night at Citizens Bank Park.
Considering the decided preference shown by fans in Tokyo (despite the Dodgers officially being the road team against the Chicago Cubs) and the six-game homestand that followed, the loss came in the Dodgers’ first game in front of a hostile crowd this season – a packed house of 43,024.
While winning their first eight games as defending champions, the Dodgers averaged more than 5½ runs per game and hit 18 home runs. They went down meekly against Luzardo on Friday.
The Phillies left-hander retired 16 of the first 17 batters the Dodgers sent up. Only Teoscar Hernandez broke the string with a leadoff single in the second inning. Andy Pages drew a one-out walk in the sixth for the Dodgers’ second baserunner, but he was picked off.
Hernandez was the only Dodger who came close to scoring in the first eight innings. He stole second after his second-inning single and flew out to the warning track in left field in the fourth inning. He reached on a two-out bloop double in the seventh inning and stole third. But Kiké Hernandez struck out to strand him.
Dodgers starter Yoshinobu Yamamoto had only a slightly more difficult night than Luzardo’s 95-pitch stroll. The Phillies did have runners on base in five of his six innings, but they hit into two double plays and needed help to score their only run against Yamamoto.
Trea Turner doubled down the third-base line in the first inning then broke for third on a steal attempt. Yamamoto spotted him in time, stepped off the rubber and threw toward third. It was not a good throw, though, and got past Miguel Rojas, bouncing into foul territory as Turner trotted home.
The Phillies pulled away with two runs in the bottom of the seventh against Dodgers reliever Kirby Yates.
Yates lit the fire by walking the first man he faced. Nick Castellanos doubled to left, putting runners at second and third with no outs. Yates struck out JT Realmuto. But with the infield in, Bryson Stott singled through the left side. With the infield playing back, Brandon Marsh grounded out to drive in the second run of the inning.
The Dodgers trailed at one point in six of their season-opening eight games, but Friday’s rally came up just short.
Singles by Rojas and Shohei Ohtani put runners at the corners with two outs in the eighth. Ohtani tried to steal second base with Mookie Betts batting, though, and was thrown out to end the inning.
Betts walked to lead off the ninth and scored on Tommy Edman’s two-run home run (his fifth homer of the season). Phillies closer Jordan Romano walked Will Smith to put the tying run on base with one out. Pinch-runner Chris Taylor stole second as Max Muncy struck out – but the call at second was overturned on replay, ending the game.
More to come on this story.
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