SAN DIEGO -- The first test of the season for the San Diego Padres (29-18), and they passed it with a 1-0 victory over the LA Dodgers (29-19). The victory gave the Padres sole possession of first place in the NL West.
It was a pitcher’s duel, with one ball that went yard ultimately deciding the outcome of Monday night’s first matchup of the season between the NL West rivals.
There is no doubt who the Padres’ ace pitcher is, and if there was, he put it on display Monday night.
Michael King pitched seven innings, allowed four hits, walked two batters, and struck out a season-high nine.
The Dodgers came into the game on a five-game winning streak, having scored 40 runs during that span, but King shut them out through seven innings.
“It's always a fun battle against them,” King said. “I felt like they have a really well-balanced lineup, one that you can't just throw the same sequences to all their guys, mix it up right, left, right, left. A lot of guys that don't chase, so you got to stay in zone, make sure that you're just getting to the execution spot.”
There was a moment in the top of the sixth inning when King allowed three hits, but Stammen stuck with him and rode the hot hand.
“That is my guy,” center fielder Jackson Merrill said of King. “There’s nothing better than playing behind him when he's on, he knows how to attack a game, and I don't know if there's anybody more locked in than him in a game.”
King carried a one-run lead into the seventh inning because, in the bottom of the first, underrated free-agent addition Miguel Andújar launched his fourth home run of the season to left field, sending Petco Park into a frenzy and giving the Padres an early 1-0 lead.
“I didn’t know that would be the game clincher,” Andújar said in Spanish. “He (Yoshinobu Yamamoto) was a tremendous pitcher, and you really have to respect that. It was a really great game.”
Denis Poroy-Imagn Images
May 18, 2026; San Diego, California, USA; San Diego Padres designated hitter Miguel Andujar (41) is congratulated by first baseman Gavin Sheets (30) after hitting a solo home run during the first inning against the Los Angeles Dodgers at Petco Park.
Another welcome addition for the Padres has been catcher Rodolfo Durán, who made several key contributions Monday night despite one slight mistake.
“We feel really comfortable with him behind the plate, and you're right, a hidden gem,” Stammen said of the catcher. “When we got him last year's six-year free agent, we didn't know a ton about him, and he just proved that he's everything that we needed and wanted from a guy that could be our third catcher.”
In the first inning, Mookie Betts singled to left field to reach first base. Freddie Freeman struck out on the seventh pitch, but Durán noticed Betts taking off for second and threw him out to end the inning.
In the top of the second, Max Muncy worked a full count when the fifth pitch was initially called ball three, but Durán challenged the call and it was overturned for a strikeout.
“Durán gets a ton of credit, along with Michael King,” Stammen said. “Those two controlled the game, and Durán throwing those two runners out were huge, keep Michael's pitch count down, give him that extra inning.”
In the top of the fourth, Shohei Ohtani walked and took his usual aggressive lead off first. At one point, he tried to steal second, but Durán threw him out.
The rough moment came in the top of the sixth when Hyeseong Kim was on first and Ohtani hit a ball toward the left side of the infield. Durán fielded it and threw to first, but the throw wobbled and Gavin Sheets couldn’t scoop it cleanly. Fernando Tatis Jr. ran over to help as Kim headed toward third, but Tatis Jr. fumbled the ball. Instead of tying the game, Kim stayed at third after Betts popped out to second for the final out of the inning.
“I think their third base coach saw that, but I would not run on Tati’s arm, especially from shallow right field there,” King said. “So, I think made a good decision keeping him there, and definitely helped me out a little bit.”
Denis Poroy-Imagn Images
May 18, 2026; San Diego, California, USA; Los Angeles Dodgers third base coach Dino Ebel (91) holds shortstop Hyeseong Kim (6) at third base during the sixth inning against the San Diego Padres at Petco Park.
Padres reliever Jason Adam entered in the top of the eighth and things got shaky for a moment. He got Andy Pages and Teoscar Hernández to ground out for two quick outs, but then walked Kim before Ohtani singled to right, moving Kim to third. Betts then hit a ground ball toward Xander Bogaerts for the third out, marking the second time Kim was stranded in scoring position.
“Kind of just felt my gut a little bit on that one, but also felt good about Jason's history against the Dodgers, too,” Stammen said.
Closer Mason Miller entered in the ninth inning and immediately walked Freeman and Kyle Tucker with no outs. Miller nearly fell behind 2-0 to Will Smith, but Durán challenged a call that gave him the first strike, and three pitches later Smith flew out for the first out.
“Big momentum shift, like any challenge that gets overturned in your favor,” Miller said of Durán’s challenge. “Big momentum shift for sure.”
Miller then struck out Muncy before Pages grounded out to secure the victory.
“He just went from throwing a lot of balls to just throwing all strikes,” Stammen said. “It's a pretty big flip of the switch, just talks about how mentally tough he is, and his ability to move on to the next pitch and go one pitch at a time.”
The Padres and Dodgers will face off again Tuesday night at 6:40 p.m. PT, with Emmet Sheehan (3-1) taking on Griffin Canning (0-2).