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Jeff Samardzija ruined David Price‘s Dodgers’ debut by shutting down the Los Angeles Dodgers 4-0. The win gave the San Francisco Giants an opening series win in Los Angeles.
Samardzija was dealing all game. He fell one out of a complete game shutout against a powerful Dodgers’ lineup. Samardzija threw a surprising 127 pitches in his 2020 season debut, but he made them all count. His final line was impressive: 8 2/3 IP, 6 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 5 K. Trevor Gott struck out Chris Taylor on three pitches to end the game.
“I thought we played a nice game,” Samardzija told the San Francisco Citizen. “Good pitching, timely hitting, it was all there.“
Price’s debut was impressive: 7 IP, 4 H, 1 R/ER, 0 BB, 7 K. He only needed 88 pitches to get through seven innings. The only blemish on his ledger was a 2nd-inning solo home run allowed to his former Rays’ teammate Evan Longoria. He was, otherwise, masterful.
It was a 1-0 game until the 9th inning, when Caleb Ferguson — nursing a hamstring strain — went back out after a scoreless 8th inning and got into trouble. He allowed a solo home run to Wilmer Flores and a single to Austin Slater after retiring Buster Posey to beginning the 9th. Blake Treinen relieved him and allowed a 2-run home run to early season star Mike Yastrzemski to give Frisco a 4-0 lead.
The lone bright spot on offense was Mookie Betts, who went 2-for-4 with a double and a stolen base. Outside of doubles by Corey Seager and Will Smith, Samardzija wasn’t ever really in trouble as the offense disappointed.
The loss drops the Dodgers 1-2 on the young season. After an off day tomorrow, the Dodgers welcome in the winless Colorado Rockies for a 3-game set. Alex Wood will take on Jeff Hoffman.
