Dodgers Digest Los Angeles Dodgers Baseball Blog
After a lengthy rain delay of over two hours, the Dodgers resumed their quest to start their East Coast trip with a sweep of the Nationals. Things didn’t look great at the midway point, as Roki Sasaki partly struggled and partly got unlucky to put the Dodgers behind by five runs. However, the Dodgers clawed back to within striking distance before they rallied for four runs in the 8th to take the lead and keep it for good. They completed the sweep over the Nationals with an 8-6 victory.
======
Nationals starter Foster Griffin started off strong, striking out the side in the 1st. However, he was mostly fortunate to limit the damage in his outing. He worked around two walks with one out in the 2nd, and game’s first run came via Shohei Ohtani‘s second homer to make it 1-0.
438 feet from Shohei. ? pic.twitter.com/d1W2fMJLdc
— Los Angeles Dodgers (@Dodgers) April 5, 2026
Following that, back-to-back one-out singles put a pair on again, but again the Dodgers couldn’t get anything going. In the 4th, a single was erased by a double play, and he got around a one-out double and two-out walk in the 5th to finish his outing with only one run surrendered despite all the traffic.
——
On the other end of the luck spectrum was Roki Sasaki, who gave up a sub-70 MPH bloop single and stolen base in the 1st and a two-out walk in the 2nd, but wasn’t really threatened.
Roki getting ahead and finishing for a pair of strikeouts on a slider and split. pic.twitter.com/KSWO5IDpWE
— Chad Moriyama (@ChadMoriyama) April 5, 2026
The walk bit him in the 3rd, as he issued a one-out free pass that came home when Luis Garcia Jr. smashed a fastball up for a two-run shot to make it 2-1 Nationals.
luiiiiiiiiiii pic.twitter.com/OEo6Uhrw8P
— Washington Nationals (@Nationals) April 5, 2026
Things really unraveled for Roki in the 4th, and unfortunately so. After a groundout to start, he issued another walk and a caught stealing was overturned for a stolen base. That proved important, as after a strikeout put him on the verge, he got a soft grounder down the line from Keibert Ruiz that looked like it’d end the inning. However, it hit the bag and bounced over Freddie Freeman for an RBI single to make it 3-1 Nationals.
calculated pic.twitter.com/ZUDoDZwK60
— Washington Nationals (@Nationals) April 5, 2026
Another single followed to put a pair on, and Roki got ahead of James Wood for an 0-2 count. He then threw a rare splitter for a strike, right down the damn middle, and Wood destroyed it for a three-run homer. 6-1 Nationals.
KNOCK ON WOOD pic.twitter.com/fRd0E64r58
— Washington Nationals (@Nationals) April 5, 2026
He rebounded a bit by getting the next four batters, but a brutal sequence for him in what could’ve been another start with progress: 5 IP, 5 H, 6 R, 3 BB, 5 K, 90 Pitches.
I actually thought this was more the line Roki had coming against the Guardians. The spray pattern was better today, and the result was more a command/luck problem than random control issues.
— Chad Moriyama (@ChadMoriyama) April 5, 2026
If the playoffs started tomorrow he wouldn't be in the rotation, but they don't, so. pic.twitter.com/Q0COEnsBVG
Starting the relief train was Alex Vesia in the 6th, and he had to work around a single and a walk, but did so without damage. Jack Dreyer gave up a walk and stolen base in the 7th, but he also kept the Nats offense down.
——
The comeback for the Dodgers began when the Nats pen entered in the 6th, and it started immediately. A one-out double from Alex Call was cashed in by a two-out Dalton Rushing homer, his first of the year to make it 6-3 Nationals.
Watch it fly, Dalton! pic.twitter.com/RsEbc70vc1
— Los Angeles Dodgers (@Dodgers) April 5, 2026
After a quiet 7th, the game was turned around in the 8th.
Freddie Freeman started the rally with a single, then Andy Pages made a comical challenge before doubling down the line in left to put a pair in scoring position.
A brief reminder before doubling that he ruined Clase's gambling ruse.
— Chad Moriyama (@chadmoriyama.bsky.social) April 5, 2026 at 12:04 PM
[image or embed]
An Alex Call walk continued his perfect day at the plate and loaded things up, then Santiago Espinal came through with his first hit as a Dodger to drive in a pair and make it 6-5 Nationals.
Bring 'em in, Santiago! pic.twitter.com/V0YBGyUudF
— Los Angeles Dodgers (@Dodgers) April 5, 2026
Will Smith then hit for Rushing and drew a walk to load things up again, and Kyle Tucker hit for Alex Freeland. He got ahead 2-0 but then rolled over one that at least plated a run to tie things up. Shohei then seemed to kill one on the first pitch, but it ended up as a sac fly to make it 7-6 Dodgers.
Kyle for the tie, Shohei for the lead! pic.twitter.com/cypgu6SuHH
— Los Angeles Dodgers (@Dodgers) April 5, 2026
In the 9th, Teoscar Hernandez hit his first homer of the year to add insurance, making it 8-6.
Teoooooooooo! pic.twitter.com/N3PUU6gBX1
— Los Angeles Dodgers (@Dodgers) April 5, 2026
——
To close things out was Tanner Scott in the 8th, who was sorta concerning as he sat 95 MPH, but he ended up only allowing a bloop single in a scoreless frame.
Who else but Edwin Diaz for the 9th? And he made things very easy, getting a 1-2-3 frame with a strikeout on just 13 pitches.
Nice.
======
A sweep completed in the nation’s capitol, making the Dodgers now 7-2 on the season.
The Dodgers will now travel up to Toronto for a three-game series against the Blue Jays in a rematch of the 2025 World Series. It’ll start at 1:07 PM HT/4:07 PM PT/7:07 PM ET on FS1 with Justin Wrobleski taking the hill against Max Scherzer.
