A fortunate bounce in the third inning proved to be the difference Friday as the Los Angeles Dodgers secured a 3-2 victory over the San Diego Padres, creating a tie for first place in the NL West.
The game’s pivotal moment came with no outs and Dodgers runners on first and second. Miguel Rojas popped up a bunt down the third-base line, where Padres third baseman Manny Machado made a spectacular diving attempt. The ball, however, deflected off the heel of his glove into foul territory, loading the bases instead of resulting in an out.
“Manny’s a Gold Glover over there,” said Dodgers manager Dave Roberts. “We caught a break right there.”
The Dodgers capitalized on the opportunity, scoring two runs in the inning that would ultimately decide the series opener. Despite the outcome, Padres manager Mike Shildt praised his player’s hustle. “Great effort,” Shildt said. “Just right off the end of his glove.”
The play compounded a frustrating evening for Machado, who also went 0-for-4 with a strikeout.
The loss snapped a winning streak for the Padres, who had been 9-4 since the trade deadline. Now level with the Dodgers in the standings, San Diego will look to regain its division lead in the second game of the three-game series on Saturday.
The matchup will feature Padres pitcher Dylan Cease, who has performed well against the Dodgers this season, throwing seven shutout innings in a June 10 start and recording 20 strikeouts over 12 total innings. He will face a familiar opponent in former Padre Blake Snell. The game is scheduled to begin at 6:10 p.m. PT.
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