Will Smith on Thursday hit his first career leadoff home run, while pinch-hitter Alex Call had a tiebreaking two-run single in the sixth inning, giving the Los Angeles Dodgers a 5-2 victory over the San Francisco Giants night in their series finale.
Smith was in the leadoff spot that usually belongs to Shohei Ohtani, who was given a second straight night off as designated hitter amid an offensive slump.
Smith went deep to right-center off Landen Roupp (5-4) in the bottom of the first.
Photo: AP
The win moved the Dodgers back into sole possession of first in the National League West after the San Diego Padres lost earlier in the day, going down 7-1 against the Milwaukee Brewers.
Los Angeles salvaged a split in the four-game series to avoid losing their first series to the Giants at home since June 16 to 18, 2023.
With two outs, Call singled to right off reliever Matt Gage, scoring Max Muncy, who grounded into a fielder’s choice, and Teoscar Hernandez, who singled.
Photo: AP
Miguel Rojas followed with an RBI single that gave the Dodgers a 5-2 lead.
The Giants tied it at 2-2 on Lee Jung-hoo’s inside-the-park, two-run homer off Emmet Sheehan (3-1) with two outs in the fifth.
Kim Hye-seong’s RBI single extended the Dodgers’ lead to 2-0 in the second.
Sheehan allowed two runs and two hits while striking out six over six innings. Tanner Scott retired the side in the ninth to earn his fourth save.
Roupp gave up four runs and six hits in 5-1/3 innings, while striking out seven batters.
In Chicago, Randal Grichuk drove in four runs to lift the White Sox to a 6-2 win over the visiting Kansas City Royals, moving Chicago above .500 for the first time since they won their opening game of 2023.
Grichuk hit a two-run home run in the first inning and then drove in two more with a single in third as Chicago won their fifth straight game.
The White Sox swept three games from the Royals to officially be the hottest team in the MLB.
The White Sox at 22-21 are above .500 after April for the first time since October 2022.
Elsewhere on Thursday, it was:
‧ Astros 3, Mariners 8
‧ Athletics 4, Cardinals 5
‧ Braves 0, Cubs 2
‧ Mets 9, Tigers 4
‧ Pirates 7, Rockies 2
‧ Red Sox 1, Phillies 3
‧ Reds 15, Nationals 1
‧ Twins 9, Marlins 1
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