Rafu Staff and Wire Service Reports
Yu Darvish allowed two runs on seven hits and was charged with the loss Sunday as the San Diego Padres went down 4-0 to the Los Angeles Dodgers.
Darvish (10-5) surrendered a solo homer to Cody Bellinger and an RBI single to Freddie Freeman in the bottom of the third at Dodger Stadium.
The Japanese right-hander struck out five and did not issue a walk in his six-inning start, but he got little support from a Padres lineup that managed just two hits against Dodgers ace Tyler Anderson (13-1) over seven innings.
Completing a three-game series sweep, the National League West-leading Dodgers delivered a statement against their divisional rivals, who had signaled their playoff intentions by acquiring superstar Juan Soto and former All-Star Josh Bell at the trade deadline.
In New York, Mets right-hander Jacob deGrom (1-0) broke Darvish’s MLB record for most strikeouts through 200 career appearances, notching No. 1,523 in a 5-2 win over the Atlanta Braves.
Shohei Ohtani registered his 100th hit of the season in a 1-for-4 outing at Seattle, singling in the Angels’ 6-3 loss to the Mariners.
In Milwaukee, Keston Hiura clubbed a game-tying home run in the bottom of the ninth inning, but the Brewers surrendered a pair of runs in the 10th and lost to the Cincinnati Reds, 4-2.
Lars Nootbaar was 1-for-5 with a run scored, as the St. Louis Cardinals capped a three-game sweep of the visiting New York Yankees with a 12-9 home victory.
The Pittsburgh Pirates have released Yoshitomo Tsutsugo, the National League club announced Friday, enabling the Japanese first baseman to seek other opportunities.
The Pirates signed Tsutsugo to a $4 million contract this offseason, but he hit just .171 in 50 games with two homers, 19 RBIs and a .249 on-base percentage in 2022, his third year in Major League Baseball.