After dropping the series opener, the Los Angeles Dodgers looked to avoid losing the series in the second of the three-game set.

The anticipation around the ballpark was ample for this one, given Shohei Ohtani’s start on the mound and the Yoshi bobblehead giveaway. And the Dodgers delivered for the fans, coming away with the victory.

Dodgers 4 – Guardians 1: key takeaways

Shohei Ohtani makes first start of 2026 season

The Dodgers had their much-anticipated 2026 debut of Shohei Ohtani as a pitcher, and of course, he impressed in his outing. Ohtani fired six shutout innings while tallying six strikeouts. Only four players reached base against him, one via a hit and three walks.

Despite the walk total, he was efficient in his outing, making just 87 pitches. However, he dealt with rain for much of his start, which likely impacted his control a bit and led to an extra walk or two.

Manager Dave Roberts said he was hoping to get six innings from Ohtani in this one, and he could push the right-hander to seven in his next outing.

Dating back to last regular season, Shohei Ohtani has thrown 22.2 consecutive scoreless innings, setting a new career high.

Dodgers offense finally strikes first

For the first time this season, the Dodgers’ offense scored first in the game. That run came in the fourth inning on a two-out RBI single by Andy Pages after a pair of singles from Will Smith and Teoscar Hernández.

The Dodgers extended their lead when Max Muncy slugged a solo home run in the bottom of the sixth inning.

However, outside those two moments, the offense remained quiet for most of the game. They tallied just six hits total for the first seven innings before picking up four more in the eighth, which drove in another two runs.

Bullpen remains a strength

Following Ohtani, the Dodgers bullpen provided three innings to close out the game. Alex Vesia and Jack Dreyer each worked a scoreless inning, but Edwin Díaz allowed a run as he struggled with his control due to the rain and wet mound.

Yoshi bobblehead night takes over Dodger Stadium

The Dodgers held their Yoshi bobblehead night, and the highly anticipated game created massive lines to get into the stadium, with some fans lined up hours before the gates opened. Many fans were dressed in Yoshi gear, and some even dressed as other characters from the Mario universe, including Mario, Luigi and Princess Peach.

The Dodgers had Donald Glover, the voice of Yoshi in the upcoming Super Mario Galaxy Movie, throw out the first pitch and say the ceremonial “It’s time for Dodger Baseball” before the game. Yoshinobu Yamamoto was the catcher for the first pitch, creating a moment fans loved.

53,614 was the announced attendance for the game, marking the third sellout of the season.

The promotion was done to celebrate the release of the new Mario movie, which debuts in theaters on April 1.

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