LOS ANGELES — Intent on continuing their season-long dominance over their Southern California rivals, the Los Angeles Dodgers got the jump on the San Diego Padres in Game 1 of the National League Division Series.
Trea Turner hit a first-inning home run, Julio Urias went five innings and the Dodgers beat the Padres 5-3 on Tuesday.
Will Smith and Gavin Lux had RBI doubles as the Dodgers followed a 111-win regular season by grabbing a 1-0 lead in the best-of-five NLDS. Four relievers combined for four scoreless innings as Los Angeles improved to 4-0 in two all-time playoff series against the Padres.
Chris Martin pitched around a two-out single in the ninth to record his first career postseason save.
The Dodgers defeated the Padres for the 15th time this season and ninth time at Dodger Stadium.
“We have seen a lot of (the Padres) lately, especially the last month of the season,” Turner said. “We kind of knew what to expect. You still have to execute and get the results, but I think we were just ourselves and didn’t give anything away.”
Wil Myers homered in a three-run fifth inning for the Padres, who are facing a deficit in the NLDS after not trailing while winning their NL wild-card series against the New York Mets.
San Diego starter Mike Clevinger (0-1) lasted just 2 2/3 innings, giving up five runs (four earned) on six hits with two walks and three strikeouts.
“It’s a team that makes you work, and they make you throw a lot of pitches,” Padres manager Bob Melvin said of the Dodgers. “When you throw pitches in the middle of the plate, they take advantage of it. That’s what I saw early on with (Clevinger). … They hit his mistakes.”
The Dodgers took a 1-0 lead on Clevinger’s sixth pitch when Turner crushed a home run halfway up the bleachers in left field. After a two-out double from Smith, Max Muncy made it 2-0 with an RBI single through the infield and into left-center field.
Smith and Lux delivered their RBI doubles three batters apart in the third inning for a 4-0 lead. Cody Bellinger added a third run in the inning when his ground ball with the bases loaded was misplayed by Myers at first base.
The Padres came to life in the fifth. Myers led off with a home run to left off Urias, Jake Cronenworth followed with a single and Ha-Seong Kim doubled to put runners at second and third. Trent Grisham grounded out to score Cronenworth, and Austin Nola’s sacrifice fly to left brought home Kim to cut the Dodgers’ lead to 5-3.
San Diego put the tying run on base in the sixth inning with no outs against Los Angeles right-hander Evan Phillips, but pinch hitter Josh Bell struck out and Myers grounded into a double play.
“Overall, we put up a good fight, came up a little short there,” Myers said, “but overall (we) like where we are. … It would be good to go 1-1 here and get back home.”
Urias (1-0) gave up three runs on four hits with no walks and six strikeouts. Phillips, Alex Vesia, Brusdar Graterol and Martin finished off the victory in relief. The Dodgers are operating without a true closer after Craig Kimbrel was left off the NLDS roster.
“It’s kind of been like this all year, obviously not in the closer role, but the rest of the guys have come in and bounced around,” Martin said of the Dodgers’ bullpen success this season. “We’re prepared for it. We’re used to it, and they are putting us in good situations to succeed.”
The Padres’ bullpen retired the last 14 Dodgers batters after Freddie Freeman’s walk in the fourth.
–By Doug Padilla, Field Level Media
