Normally loud LA bats quieted by Guardians in series loss

LOS ANGELES -- The Dodgers’ offense struggled to find its rhythm on Wednesday night, falling 4-1 to the Cleveland Guardians and dropping the three-game series at Dodger Stadium.

Despite a quality start from Yoshinobu Yamamoto, the Los Angeles lineup was held scoreless until the final frame, undone by 12 strikeouts (10 at the hands of Guardians right-hander Gavin Williams) and several missed opportunities in high-leverage spots. The Dodgers finished the night 0-for-4 with runners in scoring position and saw three separate innings ended by double plays.

While the loss secured a series win for Cleveland, the Dodgers avoided being shut out for the first time in 2026 in the bottom of the ninth when Freddie Freeman launched his first home run of the season to center field.

"I think you could talk to every single one of us and say we wish we had a better offensive first week, but I think our offense is inevitable,” Freeman said. “We’ve got a really good lineup. We’re just not hitting yet. It’s a long season, just the first week, we’ll be fine.”

The loss underscored an uncharacteristic early-season slump for a lineup that led the NL in runs scored in 2025 and trailed only the Diamondbacks in that category in '24. Manager Dave Roberts noted that the "visual" was tough for hitters early on Wednesday with a 5:20 p.m. local start time but used the word "scuffling" to characterize most of the lineup's difficulties.

"The amount of strikeouts is a little concerning, and we’re striking out at quite a clip, but I think it’ll level out,” Roberts said. “Right now, it just seems like a lot of guys are in between.”

Yamamoto completed the historic "Samurai Sequence" -- marking the first time three Japanese-born pitchers started consecutive games for an MLB franchise -- by tossing six innings and allowing just two runs. While Roberts described the outing as a "grind" where Yamamoto lacked his usual feel for the splitter, the right-hander was able to induce crucial double plays to limit the damage.

"My stuff wasn’t that bad, not terrible,” Yamamoto said through interpreter Yoshihiro Sonoda. “I was able to attack the zone. ... Over the course of this season, probably we will do this [sequence] again at some point. I’d like all three of us to do our best.”

Cleveland’s damage began in the third inning when Daniel Schneemann doubled and scored on a throwing error from Will Smith, followed immediately by a Gabriel Arias solo home run. José Ramírez later extended the lead with a two-run homer in the eighth off reliever Tanner Scott.

One bright spot for the Dodgers remains the play of Andy Pages, who finished 3-for-3 with two singles and a double. Both Roberts and Freeman praised Pages' ability to carry his Spring Training momentum into the regular season.

"Andy looks good on both sides of the ball. We’re really happy for him,” Freeman said. “Hopefully the rest of us can join him on Friday.”

The Dodgers (4-2) have an off-day Thursday before traveling to face the Washington Nationals on Friday to begin a two-city road trip in Washington, D.C.