Dodgers end the series with Padres on the winning end of the bat

The Los Angeles Dodgers closed out their weekend series in San Diego with a 4-2 victory over the Padres on Sunday, using timely hitting and solid pitching to secure the series win.

The Dodgers struck first in the third inning when Shohei Ohtani lined an RBI single to give Los Angeles a 1-0 lead. The Padres answered in the fourth as Manny Machado launched a solo home run, his 15th of the season, to even the score at 1-1.

Los Angeles broke the game open in the fifth inning. Freddie Freeman drew a bases-loaded walk to force in the go-ahead run before Mookie Betts delivered the biggest hit of the afternoon, ripping a two-run single to extend the Dodgers’ lead to 4-1. Betts finished with two hits and two RBIs, while Ohtani also contributed an RBI in the victory.

Dodgers starter Emmet Sheehan turned in an impressive outing, allowing just one run over five innings to earn the win. The Padres cut the deficit to 4-2 in the sixth on Xander Bogaerts’ RBI single, but the Dodgers’ bullpen held firm the rest of the way. Edgardo Henriquez recorded his first major league save, ending the game by inducing a game-ending double play off the bat of Fernando Tatis Jr.

The win improved the Dodgers’ standing atop the National League West and gave them another series victory over one of their biggest division rivals. Los Angeles now heads to West Sacramento to open a three-game series against the Athletics on Monday night.