Field Level Media
Sep 14, 2023
Juan Soto and Luis Campusano hit home runs, Blake Snell bolstered his Cy Young Award case and the visiting San Diego Padres pulled off a late-season series win over the Los Angeles Dodgers with a 6-1 victory on Wednesday.
Snell (14-9) gave up one hit over six scoreless innings, adding to his resume in a crowded National League Cy Young field as he lowered his ERA to 2.43.
It was the 21st consecutive start Snell gave up three runs or fewer and the 11th time in that stretch he did not give up an earned run. He struck out eight and walked one.
Soto hit a go-ahead home run in the Padres' victory over the Dodgers on Monday and gave his team an early lead on Wednesday with a solo home run in the first inning off right-hander Ryan Pepiot.
The Dodgers' quiet night on offense came after they scored 19 runs in the first two games of the three-game series, including 11 runs on 11 hits with six walks in a victory on Tuesday. The lone Los Angeles run on Wednesday came on a Kolten Wong home run in the ninth.
One start after he took a perfect game into the seventh inning at Miami, Pepiot (2-1) gave up four runs on six hits over six innings in his third major league start, and fifth appearance overall, this season. He struck out five without issuing a walk.
Pepiot was three batters into the Wednesday game when he gave up his first hit and run on Soto's blast to right field. Soto reached 30 home runs for the first time since hitting 34 in 2019 as a member of the Washington Nationals.
The Padres (69-78) made it 4-0 in the fourth inning when Fernando Tatis Jr. doubled, Soto singled and Campusano dropped a home run into the Dodgers' bullpen in left field. It was his sixth of the season.
Tatis' two-run single in the seventh inning against Dodgers right-hander Joe Kelly built the advantage to 6-0. Kelly was making his first appearance since Aug. 9 after recovering from forearm inflammation. He gave up a run for the first time in five appearances since his return to the club at the trade deadline.
The Dodgers (88-57) had just one hit, a first-inning leadoff single by Mookie Betts, until Miguel Rojas singled to center field with two outs in the eighth.
--Field Level Media