Will Smith hit two home runs, Shohei Ohtani and Andy Pages also went deep and the Los Angeles Dodgers ended a six-game home losing streak with a 5-2 victory over the visiting Minnesota Twins on Monday.
Ohtani pitched the first three innings, allowing one run in his sixth start of the season since returning from 2023 Tommy John revision surgery. The right-hander gave up four hits, walked one and struck out three, and he now has a 1.50 ERA.
Right-hander Dustin May (6-6) followed Ohtani and recorded four strikeouts over 4 2/3 scoreless innings. The Dodgers won at home for the first time since July 3 to end their longest skid in Los Angeles since a nine-game drought in 2017.
Byron Buxton led off the game with a home run, but the Twins fell to 1-3 on their six-game road trip. Royce Lewis, a native of Southern California, had three hits to give him five over the past two games. It was his second three-hit game of the season.
Carlos Correa flied out to the center field wall as the tying run in the ninth. Dodgers reliever Kirby Yates got the last two outs for his third save.
Minnesota right-hander David Festa (3-4) gave up four runs on four hits over 5 1/3 innings with one walk and five strikeouts.
Buxton wasted no time getting the Twins on the scoreboard when he hit a home run to left field on Ohtani’s second pitch. It was Buxton’s 23rd of the season.
The Dodgers answered in the opening inning as Mookie Betts led off with a walk and Ohtani homered to center for a 2-1 lead. It was Ohtani’s 35th of the season and third in three games.
Smith hit his first home run of the night in the fourth inning and added another in the sixth for a 4-1 lead. The pair of homers gave him 14 on the season.
Pages connected in the seventh inning for a 5-1 advantage, his 18th of the season and first since July 2.
The Twins put two on with one out in the ninth against Dodgers closer Tanner Scott, who then departed due to an undisclosed injury. Yates entered and walked Ryan Jeffers to load the bases before Kody Clemens’ sacrifice fly to center cut the deficit to three. Yates then retired Correa to seal the win.
