The reigning-champion Los Angeles Dodgers suffered their first defeat of the 2025 season on Friday night, as they fell 3-2 to the Philadelphia Phillies, themselves enjoying a hot start, thanks to a dominant Jesús Luzardo and the throwing arm of J.T. Realmuto. The loss drops the Dodgers to 8-1 on the season.
They had already set the all-time record for most consecutive wins to begin a season by a defending World Series champion, and within range was the franchise record for best start to a season, which belongs to the 1955 Brooklyn Dodgers with a 10-0 early mark. The 1940 Dodgers team started 9-0. On the other side, the win improves the Phillies to 6-1, and they remain in first place in the National League East.
Added to an already stacked rotation via offseason trade with the Miami Marlins, Luzardo had a night to remember with his parents in attendance at Citizens Bank Park:
Of the left-hander’s 95 pitches, 59 went for strikes. He leaned heavily on his fastball that averaged 96.6 mph on the night, and he also frequently went to his sweeper and changeup. In all, Luzardo induced 31 swings on pitches outside the strike zone. After two starts, Luzardo’s ERA for his age-27 season stands at 1.50.
Luzardo’s counterpart, Yoshinobu Yamamoto, also pitched well, as he permitted one run on three hits in six innings of work.
The Phillies in the eighth entrusted a 3-0 lead to their bullpen. The Dodgers, though, managed runners on the corners with two outs against Matt Strahm, which brought Mookie Betts to the plate as the potential tying run. In a curious decision, Shohei Ohtani from first base tested the potent throwing arm of Realmuto:
Threat over, as was Ohtani’s streak of 36 straight successful stolen-base attempts.
Not done yet, the Dodgers in the ninth mounted a comeback at the expense of new Philly closer Jordan Romano. Tommy Edman‘s fifth home run of the season made it 3-2 and made it 66 straight games without being shut out for the Dodgers. Shortly thereafter, catcher Will Smith worked a one-out walk, and Dodgers manager Dave Roberts summoned Chris Taylor to pinch-run. Taylor did indeed run in an attempt to get into scoring position, but, once again, Realmuto was on the case:
After a replay reversal of the original safe call, that was a strike-em-out-throw-em-out game-ender for the Phillies and streak-ender for the Dodgers. That was also Realmuto’s third extinguished runner of the game.
The Dodgers’ magma-hot opening to the year began with a two-game sweep of the Chicago Cubs in the Tokyo Series in mid-March. Then after a lengthy respite they swept the Detroit Tigers and Atlanta Braves. The streak was first imperiled by the Braves on Wednesday, but a late-inning comeback by the Dodgers culminated in an Ohtani walk-off home run to push their record to 8-0.
The consolation for the Dodgers is that the division-rival San Diego Padres, who also entered Friday’s slate with a spotless record, suffered their first loss of the season thanks to the Chicago Cubs.
This news was originally published on this post .
About the author
Josef Newgarden Salvages Season With Nashville Victory … Sorta
<!--> [--> Bob Pockrass FOX Motorsports Insider <!--> --> LEBANON, Tenn. — Josef Newgarden didn't have high hopes following his qualifying laps Saturday. He said he was waiting for someone to come by and hit him with a bat.He avoided the bat throughout the 2025 season finale Sunday at Nashville Superspeedway. He led the final 21 laps to somewhat salvage his season, as he avoided a winless year and finished 12th in the standings.The two-time INDYCAR champion wouldn’t call the win validation and said the victory wouldn't change how he looked at his worst season since 2014. Josef Newgarden (center) celebrates on the podium with Scott McLaughlin and Alex Palou after winning Nashville <!--> -->"I've seen the win potential in this team all year, so many different times. ... There's been a lot of strength across the calendar."And so, this […]
Liverpool agree British-record deal to sign Isak
Liverpool and Newcastle have agreed a British-record transfer for Alexander Isak.Sky Sports News understands Liverpool will pay a fixed fee of £125m for the striker, who is now expected to complete his move to Anfield on Deadline Day. Isak is expected to sign a six-year deal with Liverpool and begin his medical on Monday morning.The deal eclipses the £115m Chelsea paid Brighton for Moises Caicedo in the summer of 2023.Liverpool had a bid of £110m plus add-ons rejected for Isak at the start of August as Newcastle were unwilling to sell their star man without certain conditions being met. Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player With Alexander Isak set for a move to Anfield, take a look at all of the forward's goals for Newcastle United against Liverpool. Their stance was that they were holding out for £150m, however […]
Phillies Sign Right-Hander Walker Buehler To Bolster Pitching Staff
The Philadelphia Phillies signed veteran right-hander Walker Buehler on Sunday in a bid to bolster their pitching staff for a long playoff run.The 31-year-old Buehler, a two-time National League All-Star who helped the Los Angeles Dodgers to World Series titles in 2020 and 2024, was released by the Boston Red Sox on Friday after going 7-7 with a 5.45 ERA in 23 games, 22 of which were starts.The NL East-leading Phillies have an opening in their rotation after ace Zack Wheeler was recently lost for the season — and possibly longer — due to thoracic outlet syndrome. Buehler will be eligible to pitch in the postseason and was assigned to Triple-A Lehigh Valley.Buehler signed a one-year, $21.05 million deal last offseason with the Red Sox and was expected to be a key member of their rotation. But he went on […]
Townsend fails to convert EIGHT match points in heart-breaking US Open loss
Taylor Townsend's dream US Open run came to a heartbreaking end as she failed to convert eight match points against former Wimbledon champion Barbora Krejcikova on Sunday.The American has found herself as arguably the face of the first week after her second-round opponent Jelena Ostapenko confronted her courtside and accused her of having no education and no class. She used the furore with the Latvian as inspiration to propel her to a shock third-round victory over fifth seed Mirra Andreeva.With her four-year-old son AJ in the crowd, Townsend looked set to reach a singles Grand Slam quarter-final for the first time but Krejcikova somehow prevailed in a titanic second-set tie-break before clinching a 1-6 7-6 (15-13) 6-3 victory. Instagram This content is provided by Instagram, which may be using cookies and other technologies. To show you this content, we need […]
Townsend fails to convert EIGHT match points in heart-breaking US Open loss
Taylor Townsend's dream US Open run came to a heartbreaking end as she failed to convert eight match points against former Wimbledon champion Barbora Krejcikova on Sunday.The American has found herself as arguably the face of the first week after her second-round opponent Jelena Ostapenko confronted her courtside and accused her of having no education and no class. She used the furore with the Latvian as inspiration to propel her to a shock third-round victory over fifth seed Mirra Andreeva.With her four-year-old son AJ in the crowd, Townsend looked set to reach a singles Grand Slam quarter-final for the first time but Krejcikova somehow prevailed in a titanic second-set tie-break before clinching a 1-6 7-6 (15-13) 6-3 victory. Instagram This content is provided by Instagram, which may be using cookies and other technologies. To show you this content, we need […]
Townsend fails to convert EIGHT match points in heart-breaking US Open loss
Taylor Townsend's dream US Open run came to a heartbreaking end as she failed to convert eight match points against former Wimbledon champion Barbora Krejcikova on Sunday.The American has found herself as arguably the face of the first week after her second-round opponent Jelena Ostapenko confronted her courtside and accused her of having no education and no class. She used the furore with the Latvian as inspiration to propel her to a shock third-round victory over fifth seed Mirra Andreeva.With her four-year-old son AJ in the crowd, Townsend looked set to reach a singles Grand Slam quarter-final for the first time but Krejcikova somehow prevailed in a titanic second-set tie-break before clinching a 1-6 7-6 (15-13) 6-3 victory. Instagram This content is provided by Instagram, which may be using cookies and other technologies. To show you this content, we need […]
Related
Josef Newgarden Salvages Season With Nashville Victory … Sorta
<!--> [--> Bob Pockrass FOX Motorsports Insider <!--> --> LEBANON, Tenn. — Josef Newgarden didn't have high hopes following his qualifying laps Saturday. He said he was waiting for someone to come by and hit him with a bat.He avoided the bat throughout the 2025 season finale Sunday at Nashville Superspeedway. He led the final 21 laps to somewhat salvage his season, as he avoided a winless year and finished 12th in the standings.The two-time INDYCAR champion wouldn’t call the win validation and said the victory wouldn't change how he looked at his worst season since 2014. Josef Newgarden (center) celebrates on the podium with Scott McLaughlin and Alex Palou after winning Nashville <!--> -->"I've seen the win potential in this team all year, so many different times. ... There's been a lot of strength across the calendar."And so, this […]
Liverpool agree British-record deal to sign Isak
Liverpool and Newcastle have agreed a British-record transfer for Alexander Isak.Sky Sports News understands Liverpool will pay a fixed fee of £125m for the striker, who is now expected to complete his move to Anfield on Deadline Day. Isak is expected to sign a six-year deal with Liverpool and begin his medical on Monday morning.The deal eclipses the £115m Chelsea paid Brighton for Moises Caicedo in the summer of 2023.Liverpool had a bid of £110m plus add-ons rejected for Isak at the start of August as Newcastle were unwilling to sell their star man without certain conditions being met. Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player With Alexander Isak set for a move to Anfield, take a look at all of the forward's goals for Newcastle United against Liverpool. Their stance was that they were holding out for £150m, however […]
Phillies Sign Right-Hander Walker Buehler To Bolster Pitching Staff
The Philadelphia Phillies signed veteran right-hander Walker Buehler on Sunday in a bid to bolster their pitching staff for a long playoff run.The 31-year-old Buehler, a two-time National League All-Star who helped the Los Angeles Dodgers to World Series titles in 2020 and 2024, was released by the Boston Red Sox on Friday after going 7-7 with a 5.45 ERA in 23 games, 22 of which were starts.The NL East-leading Phillies have an opening in their rotation after ace Zack Wheeler was recently lost for the season — and possibly longer — due to thoracic outlet syndrome. Buehler will be eligible to pitch in the postseason and was assigned to Triple-A Lehigh Valley.Buehler signed a one-year, $21.05 million deal last offseason with the Red Sox and was expected to be a key member of their rotation. But he went on […]
Townsend fails to convert EIGHT match points in heart-breaking US Open loss
Taylor Townsend's dream US Open run came to a heartbreaking end as she failed to convert eight match points against former Wimbledon champion Barbora Krejcikova on Sunday.The American has found herself as arguably the face of the first week after her second-round opponent Jelena Ostapenko confronted her courtside and accused her of having no education and no class. She used the furore with the Latvian as inspiration to propel her to a shock third-round victory over fifth seed Mirra Andreeva.With her four-year-old son AJ in the crowd, Townsend looked set to reach a singles Grand Slam quarter-final for the first time but Krejcikova somehow prevailed in a titanic second-set tie-break before clinching a 1-6 7-6 (15-13) 6-3 victory. Instagram This content is provided by Instagram, which may be using cookies and other technologies. To show you this content, we need […]
Townsend fails to convert EIGHT match points in heart-breaking US Open loss
Taylor Townsend's dream US Open run came to a heartbreaking end as she failed to convert eight match points against former Wimbledon champion Barbora Krejcikova on Sunday.The American has found herself as arguably the face of the first week after her second-round opponent Jelena Ostapenko confronted her courtside and accused her of having no education and no class. She used the furore with the Latvian as inspiration to propel her to a shock third-round victory over fifth seed Mirra Andreeva.With her four-year-old son AJ in the crowd, Townsend looked set to reach a singles Grand Slam quarter-final for the first time but Krejcikova somehow prevailed in a titanic second-set tie-break before clinching a 1-6 7-6 (15-13) 6-3 victory. Instagram This content is provided by Instagram, which may be using cookies and other technologies. To show you this content, we need […]
Townsend fails to convert EIGHT match points in heart-breaking US Open loss
Taylor Townsend's dream US Open run came to a heartbreaking end as she failed to convert eight match points against former Wimbledon champion Barbora Krejcikova on Sunday.The American has found herself as arguably the face of the first week after her second-round opponent Jelena Ostapenko confronted her courtside and accused her of having no education and no class. She used the furore with the Latvian as inspiration to propel her to a shock third-round victory over fifth seed Mirra Andreeva.With her four-year-old son AJ in the crowd, Townsend looked set to reach a singles Grand Slam quarter-final for the first time but Krejcikova somehow prevailed in a titanic second-set tie-break before clinching a 1-6 7-6 (15-13) 6-3 victory. Instagram This content is provided by Instagram, which may be using cookies and other technologies. To show you this content, we need […]
Be the first to leave a comment