Saturday, May 2, 2026

Copyrighted by Sarah Morris, 2026

Despite a two-run ninth inning, the Dodgers’ offense didn’t give Roki Sasaki enough run support to win.

On a cool Saturday night at Busch Stadium, the Los Angeles Dodgers lost to the Saint Louis Cardinals, 3-2.

For the first time this year, Sasaki had a quality start, allowing three runs in six innings. He couldn’t get the last out of each of the first two innings easily. In the third inning, he allowed four extra-base hits, including a two-run homer. After that, he retired everybody without difficulty. He struck out four, walked two, and hit a batter. He was charged with the loss, but his performance was much better than earlier in the season.

Alex Vesia and Jake Eder were sharp in relief.

Any time a team hits into five double plays, rally killers, it is frustrating. The Dodgers couldn’t get anything going offensively until the ninth. Kyle Tucker, Teoscar Hernández, Max Muncy, and Andy Pages linked singles together with two outs in the ninth inning. At no time during the game did the Dodgers show any power.

The Dodgers are a much better offensive team than they have shown over the last week. They haven’t homered since Sunday, and it is not normal. They will hit eventually. Every team goes through offensive slumps during the 162-game season, and this is the Dodgers’ time. It’s better than in August and September when they are fighting for a playoff berth.

On Sunday, the Dodgers will look to salvage one from a good young Cardinal team. Also, Blake Snell goes in Oklahoma City for the first time in his rehab assignment.