Yu Darvish retired the first 14 batters he faced Sunday and allowed just two hits in seven shutout innings as the San Diego Padres blanked the visiting Los Angeles Dodgers 4-0 in the rubber game of a three-game series.
Darvish (3-1) walked one and fanned seven in winning his third straight start. Since coming off the injured list hours before an April 30 win over Cincinnati, he’s fired 17 straight scoreless innings.
Walker Buehler (0-1) lost in his second start since returning from a 23-month absence because of Tommy John surgery. Buehler lasted only 3 1/3 innings and 77 pitches, permitting five hits and three runs with two walks and two strikeouts.
Buehler trailed 2-0 three batters into the game. After retiring Luis Arraez, he was rocked for a 442-foot homer to center by Fernando Tatis Jr, his eighth of the year. Jake Cronenworth followed with a solo blast to center, his seventh.
Arraez made it 3-0 in the fourth when he slapped a fielder’s choice grounder to first that scored Jackson Merrill. Xander Bogaerts added his third homer of the year in the fifth against Gus Varland.
Darvish didn’t allow a baserunner until he walked Andy Pages with two outs in the fifth. Enrique Hernandez followed with Los Angeles’ first hit but Darvish got Miguel Rojas to line out for the third out.
The Dodgers also put two on with two outs in the eighth against reliever Wandy Peralta. However, Peralta got Freddie Freeman to look at a 3-2 changeup for a called third strike to end the inning.
Mookie Betts had two of Los Angeles’ four hits, while Jackson Merrill went 3-for-3 with two steals and a run for San Diego. Bogaerts added two hits.
Dodgers designated hitter Shohei Ohtani, whose 11 homers are tied for the team lead with Teoscar Hernandez, sat out the game with a back injury.
It was the fourth straight series win for the Padres and the first loss in six series for Los Angeles.
–Field Level Media
