The San Diego Padres halted an eight-game losing streak and avoided a series sweep against the Los Angeles Dodgers with a 5-2 victory on Sunday, a game that began with a fiery early ejection of manager Craig Stammen and infield coach Ryan Goins.
The ejections occurred just three pitches into the game as the pair argued a check-swing call against Fernando Tatis Jr. The Padres had lost five consecutive games to the Dodgers in the preceding two weeks. The dugout outburst appeared to ignite the team, which had struggled offensively and defensively throughout the series.
Neither team recorded a hit through the first three innings. The scoring opened in the fourth inning when Padres outfielder Jackson Merrill hit an RBI single. Dodgers starter Emmet Sheehan pitched 4 ⅓ innings, allowing one run on an inefficient 96-pitch outing. Padres left-hander JP Sears, who entered the day with a nearly 7.00 ERA, held the Dodgers scoreless for five innings, not allowing a hit until Miguel Rojas singled in his second-to-last at-bat.
The Padres extended their lead in the seventh inning, scoring four runs against Dodgers reliever Kyle Hurt. Manny Machado hit a three-run home run during the rally. The Dodgers responded with two runs in the bottom of the seventh on RBI singles from Alex Freeland and Shohei Ohtani, but could not score further.
Despite the win, the Dodgers (59-32) maintain a 14-game lead over the Padres (44-45) in the NL West standings. The Dodgers had been attempting to achieve their first four-game sweep of the Padres since 2009. With the series victory, Los Angeles clinched the head-to-head season series.
In other team news, Dodgers' Tommy Edman was a late scratch from the starting lineup after being hit by a pitch on his surgically repaired ankle the previous night. Manager Dave Roberts downplayed the severity, and Edman later entered as a pinch-hitter. Shohei Ohtani returned to the lineup after a one-day absence due to biceps tightness, with Roberts stating Ohtani felt "back to normal."