Teoscar Hernández homers and drives in 3 as Dodgers defeat Nationals 6-5 to avoid sweep

WASHINGTON (AP) — Teoscar Hernandez homered and drove in three, including the go-ahead run in the seventh inning, and the Los Angeles Dodgers defeated the Washington Nationals 6-5 on Wednesday to avoid a three-game sweep.

Los Angeles designated hitter Shohei Ohtani went 2 for 4 with singles in the first and seventh and a walk in the second. He scored two runs and raised his batting average to .315.

The Dodgers, who went 2-4 on their trip to Philadelphia and Washington, snapped the Nationals’ four-game winning streak.

Los Angeles rallied against Eduardo Salazar (0-1) in the seventh. Andy Pages homered with one out to tie it at 5, and Ohtani followed with a single. Tommy Edman walked two batters later, and Hernández floated a single to right field that scored Ohtani.

Kirby Yates (1-0) pitched the sixth for the Dodgers. Blake Treinen worked the ninth for his second save, stranding two runners in scoring position when James Wood grounded out.

The Nationals scored three runs in the first on two hits, including CJ Abrams’ leadoff home run, and two more against Landon Knack in the third. Knack allowed five runs over 2 1/3 innings in his first start of the season.

Washington starter Jake Irvin yielded a single, a walk, a triple and Hernández’s fifth homer of the year to open the game, then didn’t permit another runner to reach third. He allowed four runs in six innings while striking out seven.

Key moment

Hernández looped an opposite-field single just beyond the reach of second baseman Luis García Jr. in the seventh to knock in the deciding run.

Key stat

Los Angeles has not been swept by the Nationals since August 2008 in Washington.

Up next

Los Angeles is off Thursday. RHP Yoshinobu Yamamato (1-1, 1.69 ERA) starts Friday as the Dodgers begin a three-game series at home against the Chicago Cubs.

Washington LHP Mitchell Parker (2-0, 0.73), who is 1-0 with a 1.10 ERA against the Marlins, starts the opener of a three-game series in Miami on Friday.

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