In a thrilling display of resilience and clutch hitting, the Los Angeles Dodgers secured a dramatic 4-3 walk-off victory over the San Diego Padres on Wednesday night at Dodger Stadium. Will Smith, the Dodgers’ catcher, came off the bench to deliver a pinch-hit home run in the bottom of the ninth inning, extending Los Angeles’ winning streak to five games and putting them one win away from a rare four-game sweep in this heated National League West rivalry.
Emmet Sheehan made a remarkable return to the mound after recovering from Tommy John surgery, delivering a masterful four innings of pitching. In his first major league start in over a year and a half, Sheehan allowed just one run on three hits, striking out six and walking none. Dodgers manager Dave Roberts praised Sheehan’s growth, noting, “You look back a couple years, he’s much more physical. He’s had a chance to watch a lot of baseball, learn and then now apply it. I think that’s going to make him a better major league pitcher.” Sheehan echoed the sentiment, saying, “It means a lot. Obviously, there’s a lot of stuff you can’t account for when you’re coming back from an injury. You can do everything right and still have setbacks. I’m just really thankful that it didn’t go that way and it’s been all smooth so far.”
Following Sheehan’s solid start, Justin Wrobleski took over and threw five innings of relief, allowing two runs in the ninth but otherwise shutting down the Padres’ offense. Wrobleski retired 18 batters in a row at one point and was especially effective in the eighth inning, inducing a groundout from Fernando Tatis Jr. to escape trouble. Despite a shaky ninth inning where the Padres rallied to tie the game, Wrobleski managed to preserve the tie until Smith’s heroics sealed the win.
The Padres struck first in the second inning when Jake Cronenworth hit a leadoff double and scored on a two-out single by Elías Díaz. However, the Dodgers answered back in the fifth inning with a surge of offense. Max Muncy led off with a triple and scored on a sacrifice fly from Andy Pages, tying the game. After singles from Tommy Edman and a double from Hyeseong Kim, rookie Dalton Rushing delivered a two-run single to give the Dodgers a 3-1 lead. Rushing’s timely hitting was a bright spot for the Dodgers’ lineup, which saw its top four hitters — Shohei Ohtani, Mookie Betts, Freddie Freeman, and Teoscar Hernandez — combine for just one hit in 16 at-bats.
The intensity of this series was heightened by multiple hit-by-pitches, adding an edge to the rivalry. Andy Pages was hit by pitches in both Monday’s and Wednesday’s games, with the latter coming from Padres starter Stephen Kolek. Despite the tensions, cooler heads prevailed as Pages and Kolek exchanged nods after the incident. Dodgers manager Dave Roberts commented on the situation, saying, “This was sort of the gauntlet. We talked about it a couple weeks ago. And our guys rose to the occasion. And we’re playing much better baseball. Finding ways to win, and against division foes. So yeah, happy but we got one more, and I want to put these guys away.”
In the seventh inning, the Dodgers loaded the bases with two outs, but Shohei Ohtani struck out, ending the threat. The Padres mounted a furious comeback in the ninth inning against Wrobleski. Luis Arraez singled, Manny Machado reached on a throwing error by Max Muncy — a play that could also have been charged to Tommy Edman for failing to complete a double play — and Gavin Sheets singled to load the bases. Jake Cronenworth then hit a sacrifice fly to bring in a run, cutting the Dodgers’ lead to 3-2. Xander Bogaerts followed with an RBI double to tie the game and put two runners in scoring position.
With the game tied and one out in the bottom of the ninth, Will Smith stepped in to pinch-hit for Kiké Hernández. Facing Padres closer Robert Suarez, Smith connected on a 90 mph changeup, sending the ball over the right-field fence for his eighth home run of the season. The blast marked the Dodgers’ 25th comeback win of the campaign and their sixth walk-off victory, thrilling the home crowd and extending their lead in the NL West.
Smith reflected on the team’s perseverance, saying, “Yeah, it’s definitely been a long few weeks, playing some really good ball clubs, dealing with injuries and everything. But yeah, we’re just sticking together as a team, grinding through it one day at a time. Kind of flood the strike zone as pitchers and take good at-bats as hitters. So try to play good baseball and see what happens.”
The Dodgers’ victory pushed them to 46 wins, overtaking the Chicago Cubs and New York Mets for the most wins in the National League. They are now 4.5 games ahead of the San Francisco Giants, who sit in second place in the NL West, and six games ahead of the Padres in third. The Arizona Diamondbacks trail by nine games, while the Colorado Rockies remain at the bottom of the division, 28.5 games out of first place.
Looking ahead, the Dodgers are set to face the Padres in the series finale on Thursday night, with right-hander Yoshinobu Yamamoto scheduled to start against rookie Ryan Bergert. This game presents the Dodgers with a chance to complete a rare four-game sweep in a rivalry that has proven to be both fierce and fiercely competitive.
The pitching depth for the Dodgers, which had been stretched thin, is beginning to stabilize with the returns of key arms like Sheehan, Kershaw, and Ohtani. Manager Roberts expressed optimism about the team’s trajectory, highlighting the importance of this stretch: “We’re playing much better baseball. Finding ways to win, and against division foes. So yeah, happy but we got one more, and I want to put these guys away.”
As the Dodgers ride a five-game winning streak and continue to build momentum, their blend of veteran leadership, emerging talent, and clutch performances like Smith’s walk-off homer are fueling their quest for another NL West title and postseason success. The Padres, meanwhile, will look to regroup and respond in the series finale, hoping to avoid a sweep and keep their playoff hopes alive.
