Coming off a deflating road trip and in the midst of three consecutive series losses, the Los Angeles Dodgers earned a hard-fought win over the Kansas City Royals.
The series opener at Dodger Stadium pitted one of baseball’s four teams with at least 70 wins against one of four that has 70 losses this season.
With their win, the Dodgers snapped a six-game losing streak when facing a left-handed starter.
Dodgers 6, Royals 5: key takeaways
Tarik Skubal’s home debut
Skubal previously pitched at Dodger Stadium on domestic Opening Day of the 2025 season, but Monday’s game otherwise represented his first time doing so as a member of the Dodgers.
“I think with great players, there are very few things that are new to them and get that the nerviness or the excitement, whatever you want to call it, in them,” manager Dave Roberts said before the game. “And I think that making his first appearance in a home jersey at Dodger Stadium is doing that to Tarik.
“I think he’s very excited about tonight, and so I think that energy is going to be translated into the stands, in the dugout. There’s kind of a buzz in the clubhouse. He comes in with positive energy, with focus, and so it’s going to be an electric night.”
Roberts also revealed the Dodgers planned to heavily lean on Skubal given that five innings from Blake Snell would be a best-case scenario on Tuesday night.
Skubal’s start got off on a down note as he gave up a leadoff single. It was immediately erased on a force out, but Bobby Witt Jr. stole second base after beating out a double play. Jac Caglianone’s soft grounder up the middle got through for an RBI single.
Caglianone got the best of Skubal again in the third inning as his home run extended the Royals’ lead to 3-0. Caglianone’s 410-foot blast to right-center field came with two strikes and two outs, just as his base hit earlier in the game.
Skubal didn’t retire the side in order until the fourth and he wound up completing just five innings.
Dodgers offense responds
Back-to-back doubles by Hunter Feduccia and Shohei Ohtani got the Dodgers on the board in the third inning, and Freddie Freeman added an RBI single.
The Dodgers continued to trail until Max Muncy’s double with the bases loaded. The table had been set by Tommy Edman beating out a would-be double play, a Miguel Rojas double and Kyle Tucker drawing a walk after pinch-hitting for Teoscar Hernández against a right-hander.
Muncy’s bases-clearing double came on his bobblehead night, which further sent Dodger Stadium into a frenzy. But that was short-lived as Jack Dreyer surrendered a game-tying two-run homer in the seventh inning.
The Dodgers responded in the bottom half of the inning behind Freeman’s RBI single bringing in Ohtani for the game-winning run.
Edwin Díaz gets save
Pitching for the fourth time since having surgery to remove loose bodies from his right elbow, Edwin Díaz retired the side in order to convert the save opportunity.
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