Shohei Ohtani hit a three-run homer in his postseason debut and the Dodgers beat the San Diego Padres 7-5 in their Section Series opener Saturday.
Manny Machado’s two-run homer off Dodgers starter Yoshinobu Yamamoto, also making his first playoff appearance, gave the Padres a 3-0 lead early in the game.
But Ohtani quickly saved the Dodgers with his home run that tied the score 3-3 in the second inning. The great Japanese star hit the ball far, with Hall of Fame pitcher Sandy Koufax looking on and fans chanting “MVP! MVP!”
The Padres regained the lead, 5-3, but the Dodgers quickly responded again with three runs in the fourth inning.
Tommy Edman scored on a bad pitch from reliever Adrian Morejon, who took the loss. Ohtani singled by smashing his bat and then scored, along with Mookie Betts, on Teoscar Hernandez’s single off Jeremiah Estrada to give the Dodgers a 6-5 lead.
It was their first lead in a playoff game since the seventh inning of Game 4 against the Padres in 2022. The Dodgers were swept by the Arizona Diamondbacks last year.
Trailing 7-5, the Padres had the tying runs on the trail with two outs in the ninth. Fernando Tatis Jr. singled against Blake Treinen before seeing Jurickson Profar walk.
Machado then came to the plate, but he was struck out on three. Treinen got the save.
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