Dodgers come from behind to beat Padres in historic MLB opener in Seoul
SEOUL, March 20 (Yonhap) -- The Los Angeles Dodgers put on a late rally to beat the San Diego Padres 5-2 to open the 2024 Major League Baseball (MLB) regular season in Seoul on Wednesday.
The Dodgers scored four times in the top eighth to turn a 2-1 deficit into a 5-2 lead at Gocheok Sky Dome in Seoul, and the bullpen slammed the door shut over the final two innings for the come-from-behind victory.
This was the very first MLB regular season game in South Korea.
The Padres batted last in this game. The Dodgers will be the home team for Game 2 on Thursday.
Kim Ha-seong, the South Korean shortstop for the Padres, went 0-for-3 with a walk.
Shohei Ohtani, the Japanese sensation making his Dodgers regular season debut, batted 2-for-5 with an RBI and a steal.
The Padres scored the first run of the 2024 MLB season in the bottom of the third. Tyler Wade drew a leadoff walk and advanced to second on a wild pitch by starter Tyler Glasnow. He then moved to third on Jackson Merrill's flyout, before Xander Bogaerts drove him home with a single to center.
The Dodgers responded right away in the top fourth. Teoscar Hernandez reached on an error by third baseman Manny Machado, taking second base when the throw skipped past first baseman Freddie Freeman.
James Outman moved Hernandez to third base with a groundout, and then Jason Heyward brought home the tying run with a sacrifice fly to right field.
The Padres reclaimed their lead with a run in the bottom fourth, though they could have had so much more after loading the bases with nobody out.
Glasnow walked the first two batters of the inning and an infield single loaded the bases for Luis Campusano, who could only cash in a run with a 6-4-3 double play.
The Dodgers squandered a chance to pull even in the top fifth, when Max Muncy struck out with runners at the corners.
But the Dodgers grabbed the lead with a four-spot in the top of the eighth.
They loaded the bases with a couple of walks and a single. Kike Hernandez then brought home the tying run with a sacrifice fly to left.
The Dodgers caught a break when Gavin Lux's grounder went through the webbing of first baseman Jake Cronenworth's glove, allowing Teoscar Hernandez to score the go-ahead run to make it 3-2 Dodgers.
The Dodgers added a couple more runs as Mookie Betts delivered an RBI single to left, and Ohtani followed up with a single of his own to put the Dodgers up 5-2.
Both managers, Dave Roberts for the Dodgers and Mike Shildt for the Padres, said the game turned on the error through Cronenworth's glove.
"Cro's a very good defender over there and I thought the glove broke and then as I learned later that the ball went through the glove. That's a tough error for Cro," Roberts said. "A fortunate break for us and you know, you got to take them when you can get them."
Shildt thought the ball could easily have resulted in an inning-ending double play.
"He's so sure-handed and got a great jump, in a great position where he's going to field it and throw. He had a good break off the mound," Shildt said of his first baseman. "So I felt pretty confident it was a 3-6-1 but went through his webbing and the rest is history."
With Ohtani collecting a couple of hits in his debut, Roberts said his Japanese star should fit right into the Dodgers lineup.
Earlier in the game, Ohtani hit a towering foul ball measured with an exit velocity of 119 miles per hour.
"Sometimes with hitters, one swing gets you back," Roberts said. "Even in spring, he was getting some hits. I really feel that that swing that he pulled it in the air foul ... really took a good swing, and I think that bled into that at-bat where he ended up lining a ball to right field, and had another big base hit late in the game. So just a good night overall for Sho."
The Padres managed just four hits and their pitchers were called for four pitch clock violations.
After starter Tyler Glasnow went through five innings and allowed two runs, four Dodgers relievers slammed the door shut on the Padres. Daniel Hudson, on the comeback trail at age 37 after spending the last year rehabbing from knee surgery, was credited with a win thanks to a scoreless inning of work. Evan Phillips grabbed the save with a perfect ninth inning.
Padres starter Yu Darvish only lasted 3 2/3 innings while allowing a run on two hits and three walks. He needed 72 pitches to retire 11 batters.
Jhony Brito was charged with the loss after the shaky eighth inning.
jeeho@yna.co.kr
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