Padres Rout Dodgers in Game Two of NLDS

Photo by Orlando Ramirez/Getty Images

October 7, 2024

Padres 10, Dodgers 2

On Sunday, the San Diego Padres defeated the Los Angeles Dodgers, 10–2, in Game Two to tie the NLDS at one game apiece. Yu Darvish pitched well, while trade deadline acquisition Jack Flaherty took the loss. The Padres had six home runs Sunday night, finding their way against Dodgers pitching. The Padres will return to San Diego, where they swept the Atlanta Braves at Petco Park in the Wild Card round. The Dodgers’ record against the Padres at Petco Park is 1–4 in the 2024 regular season.

Padres – Royals Game Summary

First Five Innings

Game Two seemed like a must-win for the Padres, who wanted to stave off an elimination game. They started quickly, as Fernando Tatis Jr. launched a solo shot against Flaherty in the top of the first. In the top of the second, the Padres struck again. David Peralta mashed a two-run home run to extend the lead. The Dodgers got one back in the bottom half of the inning with a Gavin Lux sacrifice fly to score Teoscar Hernandez.

Homer Happy

In the sixth, Jackson Merrill hit an RBI single to score Tatis to make it 4–1. In the seventh inning, the game had to be paused due to fans throwing baseballs, trash, and other objects at Jurickson Profar and Tatis. It lit a spark for the Padres. In the eighth, Merrill hit a two-run home run to extend the lead, and Xander Bogaerts hit a solo shot to go back-to-back. Kyle Higashioka mashed a solo home run at the top of the ninth, and Tatis slammed a two-run home run. Max Muncy hit a solo home run in the bottom of the ninth. The Padres cleaned up the Dodgers, tying the series at one apiece.

Fernando Tatis Jr. gets the scoring started RIGHT AWAY! #NLDS pic.twitter.com/hjlvkWg696

— MLB (@MLB) October 7, 2024

What Went Right for the Dodgers

Max Muncy

Muncy was the only Dodger to have a multi-hit game and had a home run on the night. He also played excellent defense, but his bat seemed to be the only consistent aspect of the Dodger’ evening.

What Went Wrong for the Dodgers

Jack Flaherty

The new Dodgers pitcher could not find his groove. Flaherty pitched 5 1/3 innings, allowing five hits, four earned runs, one walk and two strikeouts. He competed against an intense pitching matchup against Darvish but he wasn’t effective. Looking to give the Dodgers a 2–0 series lead, he dug himself in a hole early, allowing three runs in two innings.

Top of the Lineup

Shohei Ohtani, Mookie Betts, Freddie Freeman, and Teoscar Hernandez are a foursome that should scare pitchers in any lineup. Hernandez earned himself a hit, but the total lineup went 1-for-13. Ohtani struck out twice and could not find his feet. His career history against Darvish is weak and continues to prove itself on Sunday.

What Went Right for the Padres

Team Hitting

As a unit, the Padres are one of the best-hitting teams in baseball. They showed off their strength from 1-through-9 in the lineup on Sunday. Eight of their nine players earned a hit, and as a team, they mashed six home runs. The Padres’ top of the order hit very well, but the bottom of the lineup hit four of their six home runs. Tatis mashed two home runs, and the unit looked great.

FIRST CAREER #POSTSEASON HOME RUN FOR JACKSON MERRILL! #NLDS pic.twitter.com/8GJvefuScY

— MLB (@MLB) October 7, 2024

Yu Darvish

The pressure for Darvish to step into Dodger Stadium and try to stop his team from falling down the series must have been tough. However, he had his best stuff on Sunday. Darvish pitched seven innings, allowing three hits, one earned run, three strikeouts and two walks. An immense day in the office for Darvish helped give the Padres a much-needed blowout.

Darvish spoke on his fantastic performance, patting himself on the back, “I felt like I had a really good concentration on the mound, just going batter by batter and just great focus. And I did get in trouble a little bit in the second inning, but other than that, I thought it was a pretty good night.”

What Went Wrong for the Padres

Jake Cronenworth

Most went right for the Padres. If you win a game 10–2, there isn’t much to spotlight about the bad. However, Jake Cronenworth was the only Padres hitter not to record a hit. He went 0-for-4 with two strikeouts. The Padres hope to see him in a better light for Game Three.

Quick Hits

The Dodgers are 1–4 at Petco Park in 2024. They look to try and be better in the postseason.

Thanks to Padres play-by-play radio announcer Jesse Agler, 126 guys have played for the Dodgers and Padres in their careers. Yu Darvish was #111. But he is the only one to start a postseason game on the mound for both teams.

at 38 years & 51 days, Yu Darvish is the oldest pitcher to go seven or more innings and allow one or zero runs in a postseason game since Tim Hudson in the 2014 NLDS G2 (39y, 82d) https://t.co/Etl3PRIeRt

— Sarah Langs (@SlangsOnSports) October 7, 2024

Looking Ahead

For Game Three, the Dodgers will go to righty Walker Buehler (1–6, 5.38 ERA) for his postseason debut. The Padres look to Michael King (1–0, 0.00 ERA) after his fantastic performance in the Wild Card round—a pivotal game to see who has to have their backs against the wall.

Dodgers skipper Dave Roberts instilled confidence in his team for Game Three, “I think for us saving leverage guys, having Walker go in Game 3, I feel great about that. That’s one of those that you just kind of want to wash away and get to the next day.”