Padres pound Dodgers, 15-11, in Opening Series Finale in South Korea
Manny Machado hit a three-run home run for the San Diego Padres in the ninth inning to put an exclamation point on a 15-11 victory over the Los Angeles Dodgers Thursday at Gocheok Sky Dome in Seoul, South Korea, the second game of the season for both teams.
The Dodgers and Padres played the first two games of the 2024 regular season in South Korea, dubbed the Seoul Series.
Jake Cronenworth drove in four runs and had four hits for the Padres. Mookie Betts hit a home run, drove in six runs and had four hits for the Dodgers. The teams split the series with the Dodgers winning the first game, 5- 2, on Wednesday.
The Padres scored five runs in the first inning off newly acquired Dodgers starter Yoshinobu Yamamoto and chased the rookie out of the game.
"I was not able to feel comfortable with my pitches," Yamamoto said through an interpreter after the game. He added that he needs to "reset his mind" and "get ready for the next outing."
Yamamoto gave up four hits and walked one batter in the first inning. Cronenworth delivered the big blow in the inning with a two-run triple. Ha- Seong Kim added a sacrifice fly. Luis Campusano had an RBI double and Tyler Wade had an RBI single.
"I wasn't ready to execute pitching from the stretch," Yamamoto said. "I know how to fix it."
The Dodgers scored a run in the bottom of the first inning on an RBI double from Will Smith. They loaded the bases but James Outman flew out to right field to end the inning and the threat.
The Dodgers scored another run in the second inning on a sacrifice fly from Shohei Ohtani that scored Gavin Lux and cut the Padres lead, 5-2.
The Padres scored four runs in the third inning to take a 9-2 lead. Xander Bogaerts drove in two of the runs with a single.
The Dodgers scored four runs in the bottom of the third inning to cut the Padres lead to three runs, 9-6. Betts capped the rally with a two-run double off the top of the left field wall.
The Padres scored a run in the fifth inning on an RBI single by Cronenworth to take a 10-6 lead.
Betts hit a two-run home run in the fifth inning to cut the Padres lead to two runs, 10-8. It was the first home run of the season for Betts.
Campusano gave the Padres an 11-8 lead with an RBI double in the sixth inning. The Padres extended their lead 12-8, scoring a run in the seventh inning. Bogaerts, who led off the inning with a walk, scored on a error by Muncy at third base. Muncy committed two of three errors for the Dodgers in the game.
Smith knocked in a run with an infield single in the bottom of the seventh inning for the Dodgers and cut the Padres' lead to 12-9.
The Dodgers scored two runs in the eighth inning on an infield single by Betts to make it a one-run ball game, 12-11.
Michael King (1-0) earned the win pitching 3 1/3 innings in relief. He gave up three runs on four hits and struck out five. Robert Suarez recorded his first save of the season pitching 1 1/3 scoreless innings and striking out two.
Padres starter Joe Musgrove was pulled in the third inning after giving up five runs on seven hits and walking two. He struck out two in 2 2/3 innings.
Yamamoto (0-1) took the loss for the Dodgers in his major league debut.
The Dodgers will play in Southern California for the first time in 2024 on Sunday at Dodger Stadium to begin the three-game exhibition Freeway Series against the Angels. They will play their regular-season home opener March 28 against the St. Louis Cardinals.
