Nationals quiet Dodgers’ bats to win series 

LOS ANGELES (News4usonline) – The Washington Nationals took two of three games from the Los Angeles Dodgers. The Nationals opened the series with a 6-4 win at Dodger Stadium. Mookie Betts took care of business in Game 2 for the Boys in Blue, racking up five hits in the Dodgers’ 6-2 win. 

The series tiebreaker would see the Nationals jump out to an early two-run lead in the top of the first inning and hold on to win their second game over Los Angeles with a 2-0 victory. The two defeats have cut into the Dodgers’ lead in the Pacific Division. 

The two losses have allowed the San Diego Padres (one game back) and Arizona Diamondbacks (two games back) to creep up on Los Angeles. After entertaining a three-game series against the New York Mets, the Dodgers go on the road for nine games before returning to Dodger Stadium to play the Atlanta Braves and Miami Marlins in a mini-homestand. 

In their final game of the series against the Nationals, the Dodgers managed to get five hits. The problem is that Shohei Ohtani accounted for three of the five hits. Outside of Ohtani, the heart of the Dodgers’ lineup could not figure out Washington pitcher Jake Irvin and the other pitchers the Nationals threw their way. 

Betts, Freddie Freeman, Will Smith, and Gavin Lux went hitless. In picking up the win, Irvin went six innings and gave up four hits while striking out six batters in the matinee game. In another game, Landon Knack pitched well enough to win the ballgame. 

Knack only surrendered four hits in five innings of work against Washington. But with the Nationals striking twice in their half of the first inning, that was enough for Washington to come away with the win. The Dodgers sent 31 batters to the plate to get those five hits. All in total, nine Dodgers struck out in the team’s ninth defeat of the season. 

The middle game of the series belonged to Betts, who went 5-for-5 and drove in a couple of runs in the Dodgers’ win. The start of the Dodgers-Nationals series was a big day in Major League Baseball as the league celebrated Jackie Robinson Day. 

The Dodgers fell short of coming up with the win. Washington got on top early and earned a 6-4 victory to spoil the Dodger Stadium festivities.

During the day, both the Dodgers and the Nations gathered around the statue of Robinson, who broke the color barrier in Major League Baseball in 1947. Every year on April 15, the Dodgers and the rest of baseball pay homage to Robinson, who was also seen as a civil rights icon with his groundbreaking moment. 

Social justice activist Dr. Harry Edwards, Ayo Robinson, Robinson’s granddaughter, former Dodger Reggie Smith, and recipients of the Jackie Robinson Foundation as well as members of the Dodgers and Nationals reflected on the memory of Robinson and what he has meant to the game. 

As for the game, the Nationals scored multiple runs in the third and fifth innings to come out on top. In picking up the win to rain on the Jackie Robinson Day celebration, the Nationals roughed up Dodgers pitcher Tyler Glasnow. 

Through five innings, Glasnow gave up eight hits, was responsible for all six of the runs that Washington scored, and allowed two home runs. The top order of the Dodgers’ lineup struggled. Betts, Ohtani, Freeman, and Smith went to the plate for a combined 15 times. The four power hitters managed four hits. 

This is surprising considering Betts, Ohtani and Smith rank in the National League’s Top 10 hitters. Betts is the No. 2 hitter in the National League. Ohtani is No. 5. Smith closes up shop as the NL’s eighth-best hitter. Washington’s pitching got the best of the Dodgers’ hitters this time.    

Lead photo caption: LOS ANGELES, CA – APRIL 16: Los Angeles Dodgers shortstop Mookie Betts (50) hustles to score a run during the MLB game between the Washington Nationals and the Los Angeles Dodgers on April 16, 2024 at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles, CA. (Photo by Brian Rothmuller/Icon Sportswire)