Yamamoto Dominates, Freeman Delivers in Dodgers' 3-0 Shutout
Yoshinobu Yamamoto struck out 10 batters over 7.0 scoreless innings, and Freddie Freeman — fresh off his All-Star Game selection — went 2-for-3 with a home run and 2 RBI to power Los Angeles past San Diego, 3-0. The Padres managed just three hits against Yamamoto and were held off the board entirely.
The story of the night was Yamamoto, and it wasn't particularly close. He held San Diego to 3 hits over 7.0 innings, walked 2, and punched out 10 — the kind of line that makes opposing hitters look like they're swinging at a different sport. Fernando Tatis Jr. went 2-for-4 to lead the Padres' offense, but San Diego couldn't string anything together when it mattered. Xander Bogaerts went 1-for-2 and Gavin Sheets 1-for-3, but the Padres crossed the plate zero times. Will Klein closed it out with a clean 1.0-inning appearance — 0 hits, 0 runs, 2 strikeouts — to seal the shutout.
Los Angeles built the lead methodically. In the third, Andy Pages singled to left to score Rushing and put the Dodgers up 1-0. Then, in the sixth, Freeman did what All-Stars do: he launched a 388-foot home run to right center, pushing the lead to 2-0 and swinging the win probability from 81% to 89% — the single biggest leverage moment of the game. Freeman wasn't done. In the eighth, he singled to center to score Edman and make it 3-0, finishing the night 2-for-3 with a homer, 2 RBI, and a run scored. Mookie Betts went 1-for-4 in support.
For San Diego, the pitching situation looks increasingly thin. Griffin Canning gave up 1 run over 4.0 innings — serviceable but not enough to keep pace — and Kyle Hart allowed 1 run over 2.0 innings in relief. The Padres are already without Randy Vásquez, who went on the 15-day injured list Friday with a bruised right ankle after taking a comebacker off it. Leaning on a patchwork staff against a lineup this deep appears to be a losing formula, and this shutout loss underscores exactly that. Freeman, meanwhile, is making a strong case that his All-Star nod is entirely warranted.