BASEBALL: Shohei Ohtani, Dodgers blank Giants, halt 4-game slide

Shohei Ohtani delivered another dominant performance on the mound, pitching seven scoreless innings to lead the Los Angeles Dodgers to a 4-0 win over the visiting San Francisco Giants on Wednesday.

Santiago Espinal and Mookie Betts sparked the Dodgers offense with back-to-back home runs in the third inning, helping Los Angeles snap a four-game losing streak. Teoscar Hernandez and Alex Call also contributed RBIs as the Dodgers earned just their second victory in six meetings against the Giants this season.

Ohtani improved to 3-2 after allowing four hits and two walks while striking out eight batters. The right-hander lowered his ERA to 0.82 through seven starts. He did not serve as a hitter for the fourth time this season while pitching.

The Giants were led offensively by Luis Arraez and Rafael Devers, who each collected two hits. San Francisco saw its three-game winning streak end, along with its stretch of eight straight games with a home run.

Giants starter Robbie Ray fell to 3-5 after surrendering four runs, including three earned, on seven hits over 4 2/3 innings. The left-hander walked two and struck out two while losing for the fourth time in his last six starts.

Ohtani worked out of early trouble in the first inning after issuing a walk to Heliot Ramos and allowing a single to Devers. The Dodgers broke through in the third when Espinal launched his first home run of the season before Betts followed with another shot to give Los Angeles a 2-0 advantage.

Betts’ homer was his third of the year and his first since returning Monday from a month-long absence caused by an oblique injury.

The Dodgers extended their lead to 4-0 in the fourth inning. Kyle Tucker doubled before Hernandez drove him in with a single, while Call later added a sacrifice fly. Miguel Rojas also singled in the inning to snap an 0-for-22 slump.

Espinal batted ninth and Call hit eighth as the Dodgers stacked their lineup with right-handed hitters against Ray.

Ohtani faced another threat in the seventh after Willy Adames and Matt Chapman produced consecutive one-out singles. However, center fielder Andy Pages preserved the shutout by chasing down Drew Gilbert’s drive near the warning track before throwing out Adames on the bases to complete a double play. -Field Level Media/Reuters