The Los Angeles Dodgers celebrated Fan Appreciation Day at Dodger Stadium in thrilling fashion as they routed the San Diego Padres, 14-0. Matt Kemp, who was in the lineup on his 34th birthday, hit one of the Dodgers’ three home runs on the day.
Kemp’s blast capped off a back-to-back sequence with Manny Machado in the second inning that put the Padres in an early 2-0 deficit. It gave Kemp his 1,000th career RBI, and it was Machado’s second home run in as many games.
While Austin Barnes had the team’s third and final homer, lining a two-run shot to left field in the fourth inning, the Dodgers continued to extend their lead. RBI singles from David Freese and Machado, and Kemp’s two-run base hit capped off a six-run inning.
Max Muncy plated two more with a single in the fifth, and he plated two more with a base hit in the seventh. Muncy paced the Dodgers with four RBI in the win.
One of those runs driven in was Hyun-Jin Ryu, who went 3-for-3 with two runs scored. Ryu’s second single came in the fourth inning and at that point he was single-handedly outhitting the Padres.
Ryu ultimately could not maintain that but he nonetheless limited San Diego to just four hits over six shutout innings. He finished with eight strikeouts to no walks, and lowered his season ERA to an impressive 2.00 — the best mark among Dodgers starters.
Another positive development was Julio Urias working two scoreless innings to wrap up the win. Included in that was striking out the side and touching 97 mph with his fastball in the eighth.
As the Dodgers now embark on a road trip comprised of three-game series with the Arizona Diamondbacks and San Francisco Giants, their magic number to clinch a sixth consecutive National League West title is down to six.
