Darvish Gem Lifts Padres Past Dodgers, Reignites NL West Showdown

Yu Darvish, 39, surrendered only one hit over six innings to steer the San Diego Padres past the Los Angeles Dodgers 2–1 at Petco Park on Friday night. Darvish’s third victory of the season, supported by three scoreless relief innings and an RBI single from Manny Machado, pulled San Diego level with Los Angeles atop the National League West at 73-56. The Padres seized sole possession of first place on Saturday, riding newly acquired left-hander Nestor Cortes’ one-hit, six-inning performance to a 5–1 win. Shohei Ohtani went hitless for a second straight game, while Tyler Glasnow absorbed the defeat for the Dodgers, who suddenly trailed their division rivals by one game with 32 contests remaining. Los Angeles answered in Sunday’s series finale. Freddie Freeman homered twice, rookie Dalton Rushing delivered a three-run blast and Ohtani launched his league-leading 45th homer as the Dodgers built an 8–2 advantage in the ninth inning. A victory would restore a tie in a division race that has already seen a nine-game July gap erased over the past seven weeks.