Yamamoto powers Dodgers past White Sox with stellar start

LOS ANGELES – Shohei Ohtani continues to break records while Yoshinobu Yamamoto electrifies the crowd with his dominant performance, defeating the Chicago White Sox 6-1 on Tuesday night at Dodger Stadium in front of 51,368 fans.

Ohtani hit his 30th home run of the season on a 90 mph slider from right-hander Shane Smith. This achievement sets a new record for the most home runs by a player in Dodgers history through the team’s first 86 games, surpassing Duke Snider (1955) and Gil Hodges (1951), both of whom had 28. Last season, Ohtani tied with Cody Bellinger (2024) and Gary Sheffield (2000) by hitting 27 home runs in his first 86 games.

Ohtani was 0-for-10 in his previous at-bats before hitting his 30th home run, becoming the first player in the National League to achieve this milestone. Over the past five seasons, Ohtani has recorded at least 30 home runs, 10 stolen bases, and five triples, a feat no other player in MLB history has accomplished in more than three consecutive seasons.

While Ohtani continues to excel offensively for the Dodgers, he will also impress the world with his pitching abilities. The two-way superstar is set to make his fourth start of the season on Saturday against the Houston Astros, which coincidentally marks Ohtani's 31st birthday.

After dropping the first game of the series, the White Sox had a disappointing outing from Smith, who struggled to navigate through the lineup.

The Dodgers' offense made an energetic splash in the first inning against Smith, who surrendered four runs after initially getting Ohtani and Freddie Freeman out. Will Smith and Max Muncy worked the counts and earned walks, allowing Teoscar Hernandez to slap a single to left field, scoring Smith. 

Andy Pages followed with an RBI double to left, bringing Muncy home. Finally, Michael Conforto capped off the four-run inning with a two-run single to center. In his last five games, Conforto has recorded six hits and six RBIs, raising his batting average to .177 for the season, along with six home runs and 19 RBIs.

Pages has been on a hot streak lately; he contributed two RBIs with a double in the first inning and a single in the third. He currently ranks fourth in All-Star voting for National League outfielders, with voting set to close on Wednesday morning. Over his last five games, Pages has gone 7-for-24 and is batting .383 (31-for-81) with runners in scoring position, which ranks fourth in Major League Baseball.

Smith (3-6, 3.86 ERA) pitched 4 ⅔ innings, allowing six hits and six earned runs while walking three and striking out six on 97 pitches.

“That kid got good stuff,” Roberts on Smith’s outing.

Yamamoto was outstanding in his performance against the White Sox, pitching seven innings and allowing only three hits, one run, and one walk, while achieving eight strikeouts. With a record of 8-6 and an ERA of 2.51, Yamamoto retired the last ten batters he faced consecutively. The only run scored during the game came in the fourth inning when Lenyn Sosa hit a double to left field, bringing Andrew Benintendi home. Throughout the night, Yamamoto threw a first-pitch strike to 16 of the 25 batters he faced, effectively keeping them off balance.

Dave Roberts stated during the pregame that he believes Yamamoto is still an All-Star despite his recent struggles in June. Yamamoto threw 98 pitches on Tuesday, and he has returned to form over his last two starts.

“The split was really good today,” Roberts said. ‘The fastball command was good today.”

After Yamamoto's first inning, he reached a milestone of 90 innings for the season, surpassing his total innings pitched during the entire 2024 regular season. He has remained healthy throughout the early part of the season. With his impressive performance, Yamamoto has established himself as one of the elite starting pitchers and is a strong candidate for selection to the All-Star Game this season in Atlanta.

“Certainly, absolutely, he’s one of the top whatever pitchers that need to be on the All-Star roster, for sure,’ Roberts said.

The month of June was challenging not only for Yamamoto but also for the Dodgers, who faced a difficult schedule against strong opponents. A few weeks ago, the Dodgers had only a one-game lead in the division over the San Francisco Giants and the San Diego Padres. However, they have since extended their lead to eight games over both teams.

The Dodgers are aiming for their seventh consecutive series win as they send future Hall of Famer Clayton Kershaw to the mound on Wednesday. He is just three strikeouts away from becoming the third left-handed pitcher in MLB history to reach 3,000 strikeouts.

The White Sox will start right-hander Sean Burke (4-7, 4.22 ERA) as he takes on the Dynamic Dodgers’ offense, which welcomes Mookie Betts back into the lineup. Manager Dave Roberts noted that Betts had a “mental day off” on Tuesday after the team concluded a road trip in Colorado and Kansas City.

The Dodgers are actively looking for pitching assistance, but they may soon have some pitchers returning to the rotation. Left-hander Blake Snell is scheduled to pitch to live hitters on Wednesday, along with right-hander Blake Treinen. 

Additionally, right-hander Michael Kopech has been placed on the injured list due to inflammation in his right knee; however, Roberts indicated that this should not be a long-term issue.