Will Smith hits 1st leadoff HR as Dodgers beat Giants 5-2, regain sole NL West lead

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Will Smith hit his first career leadoff home run and 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 on Thursday night in the 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.

The win moved the Dodgers back into sole possession of first in the NL West after the San Diego Padres lost earlier Thursday. Los Angeles salvaged a split in the four-game series to avoid losing its first series to the Giants at home since June 16-18, 2023.

With two outs, Call singled to right off reliever Matt Gage, scoring Max Muncy, who grounded into a fielder’s choice, and Teoscar Hernández, who singled. Miguel Rojas followed with an RBI single that gave the Dodgers a 5-2 lead.

The Giants tied it at 2 on Jung Hoo Lee’s inside-the-park, two-run homer off Emmet Sheehan (3-1) with two outs in the fifth.

Hyeseong Kim’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 and struck out seven.

Up next

Giants: RHP Tyler Mahle (1-4, 5.18) starts Friday against Athletics RHP Aaron Civale (4-1, 2.59) in West Sacramento.

Dodgers: LHP Blake Snell (0-1, 12.00 ERA) starts Friday against Angels RHP Jack Kochanowicz (2-2, 3.97) in Anaheim.

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AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb