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Ohtani’s pitching leads Dodgers to Game 1 win despite 4 strikeouts at the plate

MLB: Playoffs-Los Angeles Dodgers at Philadelphia Phillies

Oct 4, 2025; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Los Angeles Dodgers two-way player Shohei Ohtani (17) pitches against the Philadelphia Phillies in the first inning during game one of the NLDS round for the 2025 MLB playoffs at Citizens Bank Park. Mandatory Credit: Eric Hartline-Imagn Images

Eric Hartline-Imagn Images

PHILADELPHIA — Shohei Ohtani struck out not once, twice, three times but four — four! — straight times and almost snuffed a late Dodgers rally.

The Oh-4 nearly cost Los Angeles.

Good news for the Dodgers, Ohtani the ace was about as good as he needed to be on the mound — with a little pop from teammate Teoscar Hernández to help along the way — for the two-way star to win his playoff pitching debut.

With more than 45,000 Phillies fans against him, Ohtani settled down after a three-run second to strike out nine over six innings and lead the Dodgers to a 5-3 win over Philadelphia on Saturday night in Game 1 of their NL Division Series.

Ohtani retired 15 of the final 17 batters he faced, and the right-hander held Trea Turner, NL home run and RBI champion Kyle Schwarber, and Bryce Harper to 0 for 9 with five strikeouts against him.

Even when Ohtani’s bat went cold, he warmed up over 89 pitches in a deep outing for him.

“The reason why I’m a two-way player is because that’s who I am, and it’s what I can do,” Ohtani said through a translator.

Hernández rallied the Dodgers with a three-run homer after Ohtani struck out with two runners on base in the seventh inning, and three Los Angeles relievers combined for three scoreless innings.

Alex Vesia retired pinch-hitter Edmundo Sosa with the bases loaded in the eighth to preserve the lead. Roki Sasaki worked the ninth for his first career save.

Ohtani and Sasaki are the first Japanese-born starter and reliever to earn a win and a save in the same postseason game.

“This epitomizes compartmentalizing. He’s essentially two people in one night, in one game,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said. “To kind of look at the at-bats that he took tonight and how he struggled offensively, but to separate that and just be a pitcher, and weather that inning. And to go out there and give us six innings, keep us in the ballgame, I just don’t know any human that can manage that, those emotions, and how do you not take that to the mound? So, yeah, we continue to just witness history.”

Ohtani stepped on the field shortly before the first playoff start of his career and was booed so voraciously by Phillies fans, they drowned out the hype video playing on the big screen.

A three-time MVP, Ohtani had admitted to nerves about playing in front of a crowd — much less facing the NL East champions’ loaded lineup — known for tormenting fans through four hours of hell.

Phillies fans taunted Ohtani with elongated chants of “Shoooo-hei!” as he gamely tried to match the moment for the Dodgers.

“I was a little nervous imagining myself out there on the mound,” Ohtani said. ”But once I was on the mound and on the field, that went away and it was really me focusing.”

Ohtani led off the game at the plate and struck out on three pitches against Cristopher Sánchez. Ohtani was called out on strikes in the third and fifth.

Ohtani whiffed again in the seventh with no outs and two runners on against Matt Strahm. Following a Mookie Betts popout, Hernández silenced a roaring Phillies crowd with an opposite-field homer to right off Strahm for a 5-3 lead.

Ohtani struck out three times against Sánchez for the second time this season. Only two other pitchers this season fanned Ohtani three times in a game.

He’s been mired in a career hitting funk in Philly.

In the regular season, Ohtani has yet to hit any of his 250 homers in Philadelphia. He’s batting .250 lifetime in Citizens Bank Park with just two extra-base hits and four RBIs over 12 games and 44 at-bats. He’s struck out 16 times.

The Japanese sensation didn’t pitch for the Dodgers last season while recovering from a second elbow surgery, in September 2023. He still became the first player with at least 50 home runs and 50 stolen bases as the Dodgers won the World Series over the New York Yankees.

The 31-year-old Ohtani has slowly built up his pitch count this year and struck out 62 batters over 47 innings with a 2.87 ERA in 14 regular-season starts.

The Dodgers hope a day off before Game 2 on Monday night can help Ohtani with the rest he needs to make a strong return for a potential Game 4 or Game 5 start.

“I think, for Sho, we can’t even begin to fathom what it’s like to do both things, especially with the added intensity of the postseason,” Dodgers president Andrew Friedman said before the game. “I think getting a day off between Games 1 and 2, after Game 2, I think it’s all helpful. There’s no question it’s taxing. It’s taxing on everybody. And then you layer on his ability to do both, and it’s challenging.”

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Senators Finish Preseason Strong With 3–1 Win In Montreal

After being outscored 12–1 over their previous two preseason games, the Ottawa Senators closed out their exhibition schedule on a high note on Saturday night, defeating the Montreal Canadiens 3–1 at the Bell Centre. 

It was exactly the kind of performance Ottawa needed heading into the regular season – far more structured and disciplined than the past two games. Finishing their chances, however, remains troublesome as the Sens scored just 12 goals on their 187 shots in preseason.

Goaltender Linus Ullmark wasn’t heavily tested in the early going, but the Canadiens pressed more as the game went on, forcing the veteran to come up with several key saves. Ullmark finished with 20 stops on 21 shots and was calm throughout.

Unlike Tuesday’s nasty affair in Quebec City — where the teams combined for over 150 penalty minutes — Saturday’s game was a much cleaner contest, featuring just 14 total minutes in penalties as both sides focused on hockey and getting ready for the new season.

Ottawa opened the scoring midway through the first period on a perfectly executed 2-on-1. Jake Sanderson carried the puck into the Montreal zone, waited for Shane Pinto to drive the net, and fed him a perfect centring pass that Pinto tapped into an open cage for a 1–0 lead.

The Senators doubled their advantage at 11:38 of the second when Nick Jensen’s point shot was redirected by David Perron, giving Ottawa a 2–0 edge. Dylan Cozens had a great chance to make it 3-0 on a shorthanded breakaway, but he was denied by Canadiens goalie Sam Montembeault.

Montreal pushed harder after that, generating several quality chances. Adam Engstrom nearly capitalized on a solo rush, easily dancing past Thomas Chabot, and Kaiden Guhle was turned aside twice — once on a 2-on-1 and again from the slot — but Ullmark stood tall. 

The Canadiens finally broke through in the third when Lars Eller mishandled a puck in front of his own net. Attempting to settle it instead of clearing, that allowed Caufield to swat home the puck for Montreal's only goal.

Eller redeemed himself later, sealing the win with an empty-netter to make it 3–1.

Neither team could convert on the power play — Ottawa went 0-for-2, while Montreal was 0-for-3. The Senators outshot the Canadiens 28–21.

Pinto earned first-star honours on the game sheet after an excellent performance, while Montembeault (26 saves) was named the second star. Arthur Kaliyev, who assisted on the opening goal, took third-star honours.

The victory capped off the preseason for the Sens (3-3), who now turn their attention to final roster cuts ahead of Monday’s 5 pm deadline. The regular season opens on Thursday night in Tampa Bay against the Lightning.

More Sens Headlines From The Hockey News Ottawa:
Senators Land A True NHL Heavyweight In A Deal With The Devils
More Senators Broadcast Changes: Marc Methot Out At TSN
Reviewing Four Of The Nastiest Moments From Senators–Canadiens Game On Tuesday
Brady Tkachuk On Starring In Prime Video Show: 'I'm An Open Book To Begin With'
Broadcast Frustrations Resurface For Senators Fans
Sens Goalie Linus Ullmark Says He Enjoys The Struggle

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Penalties consume Panthers preseason-ending win over Tampa; Aaron Ekblad leaves game early

The Florida Panthers and Tampa Bay Lightning wrapped up their respective preseasons on Saturday night in Sunrise.

Much like the previous meeting between the two intra-state rivals that took place in Tampa on Thursday, one that ended with 186 penalty minutes being called, Saturday’s game felt like it had equal parts hockey and extracurricular activities.

In just the first period, which took 53 minutes to complete thanks to all the rough stuff, the Cats and Bolts combined for 64 penalty minutes and four game misconducts.

One of the men shown the gate was Tampa’s Scott Sabourin, who was one of several Tampa players called up from their AHL affiliate hours before the game who showed a propensity for getting physical with Panthers players right from the start.

Sabourin was tossed from the game after hitting and then cross-checking Florida defenseman Aaron Ekblad in the face at the 2:18 mark of the first period, ending both of their nights after one shift.

After the game, Panthers Head Coach Paul Maurice did not have an update on Ekblad, only saying that he would be reevaluated on Sunday. 

As is generally the case, the Panthers didn’t let any of that phase them in pursuing of the greater good: picking up two points.

While the Lightning were racking up the ejections (three Tampa players were shown the gate during the opening period), Florida was putting the puck in the net.

Power play goals from Mackie Samoskevich and Evan Rodrigues, and an even strength tally off the stick of Jack Studnicka, sent the Cats into the first intermission with a 3-0 lead.

Unsurprisingly, the arrival of the middle frame brought more of the same.

As Tampa players continued congregating in the penalty box, Florida kept pumping in the power play goals.

Jeff Petry joined the fun, and both Samoskevich and Rodrigues tickled the twine for a second time to give the Cats a hearty 6-0 lead.

Rodrigues picked up the hat trick during the third period, and yes, as you may have guessed, it came with Florida on the power play.

Samoskevich lost his shot at a hatty when he was one of four players ejected at the 4:01 mark of the third.

When the dust settled, Florida and Tampa combined for an eye-popping 274 penalty minutes and the Panthers skated away with a 7-0 win.

For those wondering, the Cats and Bolts meet for the first time during the regular season on Nov. 15 in Sunrise.

On to Opening Night.

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Photo caption: Oct 2, 2025; Tampa, Florida, USA; Florida Panthers center Eetu Luostarinen (27) pushes Tampa Bay Lightning defenseman J.J. Moser (90) down to the ice in the third period at Benchmark International Arena. (Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images)

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Nashville Predators' Joakim Kemell's Clutch Performance Could Make The Difference In Final Roster Spots

Milwaukee Admirals forward Joakim Kemell (25) fires a shot past Chicago Wolves defenseman Joel Nystrom (9) in a game Friday, April 18, 2025, at the UW-Milwaukee Panther Arena in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. © Dave Kallmann / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

The Nashville Predators needed a serious shot in the arm to finish off a pre-season that had them in a bit of a tailspin.

Joakim Kemell provided it in a big way in Saturday’s 3-2 overtime victory over the Carolina Hurricanes at Bridgestone Arena.

If there were any doubts as to whether the 5-foot-11, 182-pound Finnish winger has put himself on the Opening Night roster, he may have erased them with his performance Saturday. The Preds were in danger of falling into another lackluster spell until Kemell changed the game in a heartbeat.

The 21-year-old may not have scored a hat trick in terms of goals, but he did have a trio of big moments in the game: an overtime winning goal, a secondary assist on another, and a crunching hit on a player three inches taller that caused the Hurricanes to lose their composure.

After Carolina’s Sebastian Aho drew an unsportsmanlike misconduct penalty, Kemell got the puck at the blueline and passed to his right. Brady Skjei fed it back to Kemell, who tallied the golden goal on a one-timer at 4:44 of the extra frame. Skjei and Fedor Svechkov each picked up an assist.

Joakim Kemell speaks to the media following the 3-2 overtime victory over the Carolina Hurricanes Saturday, Oct. 4, 2025 at Bridgestone Arena. Video Courtesy of the Nashville Predators

“I like to shoot, so I hit the net and I can score sometimes,” Kemell said after the game.

A modest assessment, to be sure. But it’s what Kemell did earlier that had everybody in Bridgestone Arena buzzing.

Kemell delivered a massive hit to 6-foot-2 Andrei Svechnikov at center ice, causing the Russian winger to lose his stick.

This obviously didn’t sit well with the Canes. Goalie Pyotr Kochetkov took a swipe at Jonathan Marchessault, and Aho’s unsportsmanlike misconduct set up a 4-on-3 man advantage for the Predators. Kemell made the most of the opportunity on the next shift.

“I mean, just a part of me,” Kemell said of his hit on Svechnikov after the game. “I like to play hard and I like to hit. I mean, that was good timing. I don’t know what to say… Good hit, good goal.”

Predators center Ryan O’Reilly is a 17-year NHL veteran, yet he was amazed by the intensity of Kemell’s hit.

“That’s one of the harder hits I’ve seen in hockey, to be honest with you,” O’Reilly said. “In overtime, you never really see that. That was pretty special.”

Kemell contributed to the Predators’ goal that put them ahead 2-1 at 4:59 of the second period, earning a secondary assist on Tyson Jost’s first unofficial goal as a Predator since being claimed on waivers Oct. 1.

Kemell played on a line with Jost and Svechkov, which had several quality shifts throughout the game.

"I've seen a lot of things, but I don't think I've seen a hit like that in 3-on-3," Predators head coach Andrew Brunette said. "Then, to get a goal after they were trying to get at him, was pretty fun to be a part of."

Taken 17th overall by the Predators in the 2022 NHL Draft, Kemell provided the intensity when the team needed it the most. Whether it can carry over into the regular season remains to be seen, but it at least ended the pre-season on a positive note for the Predators, who have shown a propensity for lackluster play in their last three games.

“I hope we keep that feeling, because we worked really hard for that feeling (Saturday),” Brunette said.

A player is often judged by how he responds when something is on the line. In the case of Kemell, it's a final roster spot.

With Luke Evangelista now signed and ready to join the team, that could affect Kemell securing a top-six forward spot. But Matthew Wood being placed on injured reserve with a lower-body injury may have kept the door open for Kemell. Saturday's performance could have made those final decisions easier for the Preds’ brass.

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Observations From Blues' 4-0 Preseason Win Vs. Blackhawks

The St. Louis Blues closed out the preseason in impressive fashion with a 4-0 win against the Chicago Blackhawks at United Center in Chicago on Saturday.

The Blues (2-3-1) used a half and half lineup, inserting a number of younger players they still wanted to get a look at along with a couple veterans fighting for spots.

One of those is Milan Lucic, in camp on a professional tryout who scored his first goal; Robert Thomas and Otto Stenberg each had a goal and an assist, Logan Mailloux had two assists, and Aleksanteri Kaskimaki also scored for the Blues, who scored three times in the second period, and Joel Hofer made eight saves through two periods before Colten Ellis cleaned up the third with nine stops.

The Blues will now work during the week starting on Sunday before opening the season Thursday at home against the Minnesota Wild.

Here are tonight’s observations:

* It’s going to come down to Lucic/Texier for the final roster spot – With Mathieu Joseph out of the lineup Saturday, one has to assume the Blues have seen enough from him to feel he’s earned his roster spot.

As for Lucic, this was the most noticeable he’s been since he’s arrived in St. Louis. His goal is a perfect example of how he has to play, work to keep a puck in the offensive zone, keep it it alive, find the open man, then move to the net and park his big, strong 6-foot-3, 235-pound body, getting a piece of Mailloux’s shot off the left circle at 13:13 of the second period to give the Blues a 2-0 lead:

Lucic finished the game with a game-high eight hits in 14:35. He has to be making an impact with his body in order to have success. He did so in this game.

"Establishing the front of the net winning battles," Lucic said. "I felt like I could have done a better job of winning battles coming into this game. Our whole team, it was probably our best effort as far as winning battles, keeping pucks alive, playing in the O-zone. So not only myself, a lot of guys got rewarded for that tonight."

Texier had one really skilled play with roughly two minutes left when behind the net, he was deceitful in coming back against the grain with a pass to Pius Suter that was stopped in front, but this was his chance to really make some high-end plays against a AHL-type lineup and just didn’t do so playing on a line with Suter and Jordan Kyrou.

This is going to be a tough call for the Blues, who do have the luxury of extending Lucic’s PTO every 10 days if they feel like he needs more time to showcase himself and keep from putting Texier on waivers.

I just don’t have a sense where they will go with this at the moment. It’s literally a 50/50 call.

"That's a better question for management, but as far as for me, it's a tough bump in the road getting a groin injury there," Lucis said. "I know a lot of people are judgmental about my skating, but in order for me to be effective, I definitely need my legs and my speed to play the way that I do. To be able to battle through the last three games with a groin injury, I felt like I got better from Tuesday to Thursday to Saturday. Happy with what I was able to do this week."

* Stenberg, Kaskimaki will be full-time players starting next season – Otto Stenberg and Aleksanteri Kaskimaki, playing with Dalibor Dvorsky on Saturday, will almost certainly be full-time NHL players next season.

We’ve talked about Dvorsky enough, and I still think he starts the season in Springfield of the American Hockey League, as will Stenberg and Kaskimaki, but I feel like the latter two have had such impressive camps. They’re good, solid, responsible players who read the game well. And it was on display on Kaskimaki’s goal to open the scoring at 4:04 of the second period to make it 1-0:

Tyler Tucker reads a chance to move the puck in transition to Stenberg, who moved it up the lefthand side before reading a play to slide the puck in stride to Kaskimaki, whose deft redirection didn’t appear to be much but perhaps caught Arvid Soderblom off guard just enough for the puck to squirt through the Blackhawks goalie:

They’re both hard workers, and I think the coaching staff has most certainly taken notice of their work and smart abilities, whether with or without pucks.

Blues coach Jim Montgomery spoke of Stenberg’s camp on Saturday morning.

Neither of them will make the roster out of training camp, but they have each put his stake in the ground, and firmly implanted it in the ground. It won’t be too long. Kaskimaki-Dvorsky-Stenberg will be a solid line in Springfield this year.

* Hunter Skinner will be a good insurance policy – Skinner, acquired in the Vladimir Tarasenko trade Feb. 9, 2023 with the New York Rangers, was quietly having himself a strong camp and nipping at the heels of Matthew Kessel for the seventh defenseman on this squad.

He didn’t do anything to squash his resume in this game either. He had an assist in the game when he funneled a puck towards the goal that Thomas tipped in for a 3-0 lead at 18:10 of the second period and was a plus-2 in 16:53:

But I liked Skinner’s physical nature in this game, and he made a solid defensive play with roughly eight minutes left in the second when he hustled back and broke up a play that started off as a 2-on-1 for Chicago.

Skinner had five shot attempts and three hits but it sure seemed like more than that. He will be one of the first call-ups should the Blues need a defenseman.

As for Kessel, this was his best preseason game, playing a team-high 21:08 with six hits. He was engaged and playing like a player that knew someone was looking for his job. But I thought Kessel did a nice job of breaking up a number of Chicago rushes and moving pucks quickly back out of the zone.

I think he cinched his place on this roster.

* Thomas, Snuggerud are going to make magic – If there was any doubt that two of the Blues' top forwards are already in sync, just watch not only tonight's game but the ones they've played previously. Forget about Snuggerud's ability to shoot, this kid can make plays; we already know Thomas can. But if they can make plays for each other and complement each other, watch out. That's all I'm going to say. And for Pavel Buchnevich, who will start on that line, you better take advantage of the elite playmaking provided by two skilled players.

"It helps when you're playing with such good players," Snuggerud said. "I feel like it's something I've been trying to improve a lot because it's needed in the game of hockey. Being able to work on things like that makes the game more fun."

* Quick hitters – Mailloux, who finished the preseason with four points, will be in the starting lineup on Thursday, undoubtedly. He played 20:52 and was on the penalty kill again, something the Blues want to work with him on and again used his long body and stick to disrupt plays. I think he makes a good option, if needed, as a quarterback power play with his alert play to Thomas that resulted in Stenberg’s goal at 4:24 of the third period that made it 4-0:

Theo Lindstein, who had an assist on the Thomas goal, had his best game of the preseason playing 17:55 with three shots on goal. He will benefit greatly from a full season in Springfield. This is a project that the Blues will be patient with, and I thought Leo Loof asserted himself much better in this game than his last one last Tuesday. He played 18:42 and also had six hits.

That’ll do it for the preseason. The opening night 23-man roster deadline is 4 p.m. (CT) on Monday. It all starts for real on Thursday.

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Blackhawks Drop Preseason Finale Vs Blues With Mostly AHL Lineup

The Chicago Blackhawks finished their preseason slate of games with a match against the St. Louis Blues on Saturday night. 

Chicago ran with a mostly-AHL lineup against the Blues, who played a large number of players who will be on their opening night roster. 

The Blackhawks kept it close in the first period, to the point where they reached the intermission 0-0. St. Louis outshot Chicago 9-6. 

It was in the second period that the Blackhawks looked like the lesser team with the lesser lineup. They were outshot 11-2 and outscored 3-0. Aleksanteri Kaskimaki, Milan Lucic, and Robert Thomas scored for the Blues. 

In the third period, the Blackhawks kept pace with the Blues again (outshot 11-10), but the Blues added an Otto Stenberg power play goal for the 4-0 lead. That would hold as the final score. 

Arvid Soderblom took the net for the Blackhawks. The team was outmatched in front of him, which led to him giving up four goals on 31 shots. From his earlier games in the preseason with better lineups involved, he proved that he's ready to be Spencer Knight's primary backup. 

It is fair to assume that none of the players who played in this game forced the hand of the coaching staff when it comes to making the opening night roster. Anything they believed going into this game likely still stands. 

Outside of Soderblom, one defenseman and one forward, every player who appeared in this game is going to be sent back down to the Rockford IceHogs. 

That's it. Next time, they count. The Blackhawks will make decisions and have their roster ready for the NHL's first day of the season. Chicago will be in the first game on the first day (Tuesday), as they will take on the defending Stanley Cup champion Florida Panthers. 

Visit The Hockey News Chicago Blackhawks team site to stay updated on the latest news, game-day coverage, player features, and more.

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Dodgers show their resiliency again in NLDS Game 1 comeback win over Phillies

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Saturday, October 4, 2025 - Los Angeles Dodgers.
Dodgers players (from left) Tommy Edman and Alex Call celebrate with Freddie Freeman after scoring on a two-run double by Kiké Hernández in the sixth inning of a 5-3 win over the Philadelphia Phillies in Game 1 of the National League Division Series at Citizens Bank Park on Saturday. (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)

It wasn’t an impassioned speech. But it proved to be a prescient point.

In the hours before Game 1 of the National League Division Series on Saturday night, the Dodgers' offense was gathered for their typical pregame hitters meeting when Aaron Bates, one of the hitting coaches, spoke up and offered a reminder to the room. 

In this series, Bates knew there would be moments of adversity. And in this ballpark, where 45,000 crazed Philadelphia Phillies fans have created one of the best home-field advantages in all of baseball, the Dodgers needed to be ready to react and respond.

“The intensity and the fans were going to be there early in the game,” he told them, as infielder Miguel Rojas later recalled.

“If something happens early, if Schwarber hits one 800 feet and the roof blows off this place, don’t worry about it,” he added, according to third baseman Max Muncy, “Because when they’re dead silent in the seventh or eighth innings and we’re winning, that’s all that’s gonna matter.”

In the nine innings that followed, that’s exactly how the script played out.

The Phillies landed an early punch, ambushing Shohei Ohtani with a three-run second inning that had Citizens Bank Park shaking on the scale of a small earthquake.

Then the Dodgers answered back, rallying to a resilient 5-3 win that gave them an all-important leg up in this best-of-five series.

“It’s a message that, when you hear it, it sounds silly,” Muncy said of Bates’ pregame reminder. “But, there’s a lot of truth to it. When you come into places like this, it’s very hostile, it’s very loud.”

It certainly was in the second inning, when J.T. Realmuto hit a two-run triple that opened the scoring and knocked the defending champions to the mat.

But as they’ve shown so often over the last two Octobers, even when they’re down they never seem to be out.

“Get through the loud crowd and that sort of thing,” Bates said, modestly downplaying his hitters’ meeting speech. “Just make sure you stick to your plan, stick to the course. And we did a good job doing that.”

The Dodgers shrugged off the early adversity, with Ohtani allowing no further damage over a six-inning start; finishing his postseason pitching debut with nine strikeouts and four monumental scoreless frames after the second.

Read more:It must be October, because Super Kiké Hernández is here. 'Track record speaks for itself'

Their lineup, meanwhile, chipped away at the deficit, chasing Phillies ace and Cy Young Award candidate Cristopher Sánchez from the game on Kiké Hernández’s two-out double in the sixth.

In the seventh, the actual knockout blow arrived on a game-deciding swing from Teoscar Hernández. With two outs in the inning, and the Phillies on the verge of an escape, he blasted a go-ahead three-run home run.

Just like that, South Philadelphia fell silent.

“When you can hear a pin drop in the stadium, that’s the ultimate feeling in baseball,” Muncy said. “I felt like the people in the upper deck could hear us cheering in the dugout.”

Early on in Saturday’s game, the Phillies’ daunting home stadium was providing the opposite environment.

Sánchez was carving Dodgers hitters up with wicked sinkers and fall-off-the-table changeups. On the other side, Ohtani ran into trouble in the bottom of the second.

Read more:Hernández: Dodgers save Shohei Ohtani, not the other way around, in monumental Game 1 NLDS win

The inning started with a walk to Alec Bohm, when Ohtani missed with a full-count fastball. That was followed by a single from Brandon Marsh, who got a down-the-middle fastball in a 2-and-2 count and shot a base hit to center.

As Ohtani tried to settle down, a chorus of taunting chants — Sho-Hei! Sho-Hei! — came raining down around him.

Then, pandemonium was unleashed on one Realmuto swing. 

After missing with a first-pitch slider to Realmuto, Ohtani left a 100.2 mph heater in the heart of the zone. The location rendered the velocity irrelevant. Realmuto barreled it up, sent a line drive screaming into right-center, then chugged all the way to third after the ball got past Teoscar Hernández in the gap.

A fly ball two batters later — which served as a sacrifice fly thanks to Hernández’s inability to cut the ball off on Realmuto’s triple earlier — made it 3-0.

In the moment (and with the way Sánchez was pitching), it felt like an almost insurmountable lead.

In the dugout, however, the Dodgers thought back to Bates’ pregame message.

They were staggered, but didn’t submit. They were rattled, but not wrecked.

“Gotta give credit to Aaron Bates on that one. He made sure all the hitters knew about it,” Muncy said. “You just got to find a way to weather that storm and understand what the end goal is."

Dodgers star Shohei Ohtani delivers during the third inning against the Phillies on Saturday.
Dodgers star Shohei Ohtani delivers during the third inning against the Phillies on Saturday. (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)

The turnaround began with Ohtani, who despite striking out four times as a batter followed Realmuto’s triple by retiring the next 10 he faced. His only other trouble came in the fifth, when the bottom two hitters in the Phillies’ order reached base with one out. But even then, Ohtani buckled down, getting Trea Turner to line out and Kyle Schwarber to swing through a curveball that ended the inning.

On the night, Ohtani and the Dodgers’ relievers limited the Phillies’ big three of Turner, Schwarber and Bryce Harper to just one hit in 11 at-bats.

“I use the word compartmentalize a lot, but this epitomizes compartmentalizing,” manager Dave Roberts said of Ohtani. “To go out there and give us six innings, keep us in the ball game, I just don't know any human that can manage that, those emotions. How do you not take [the hitting struggles] to the mound?”

Eventually, the Dodgers’ offense found life too.

With two outs in the sixth, and Sánchez having given up only two hits all night, Freddie Freeman sparked a rally with a five-pitch walk. Tommy Edman took a sinker the other way to put two aboard.

That brought up Kiké Hernández, who continued his habit of October heroics by jumping on a slider from Sánchez that caught a little too much plate. Hernández roped a line drive down the left-field line. Freeman and Edman scored, with the latter running through a stop sign before sliding safely across the plate.

Just like that, Sánchez was knocked out of the game. What had been a raucous crowd earlier suddenly grew tense.

Then, in the seventh, Teoscar Hernández made the comeback complete.

Teoscar Hernández celebrates after hitting a three-run home run against the Phillies.
Teoscar Hernández celebrates after hitting a three-run home run in the seventh inning for the Dodgers against the Phillies on Saturday. (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)

After Andy Pages led with a single and Will Smith (who entered the game in the fifth inning after missing the wild-card round with a fractured hand) was hit by a pitch from David Robertson, the Phillies summoned top left-handed reliever Matt Strahm and watched him get Ohtani to strike out for the fourth consecutive time (something he had done in a game only once before in his career).

By getting Strahm on the mound, however, the Dodgers had favorable right-on-left matchups. Mookie Betts couldn’t take advantage, popping out to third for the second out. Hernández, on the other hand, didn’t miss, sending an elevated fastball sailing high into the autumn night.

“I watched videos [of him]. He likes to go up in the strike zone. I think that's when he's stronger,” Hernández said. “[I was] not trying to overswing or anything like that. Try to bring in one run to tie the game. But he left it over the strike zone.”

And as the ball landed in the right-field stands, the once rollicking ballpark fell into a stunned silence.

Back in the dugout, Muncy said, “a lot of people were yelling at Bates, like, ‘Hey, you were right!’”

Bates, once again, deflected when asked about the moment.

“We were really just excited that Teo got him eventually,” he said. “It was a great swing, using the whole field. That’s what Teo does. He stuck to his plan throughout the day. And then they make a mistake and he gets him.”

Still, the attitude he’d preached before the game had helped the Dodgers jump back in front. And from there, a new-look bullpen plan managed to collect the final nine outs.

Projected Game 4 starter Tyler Glasnow came on in relief of Ohtani in the seventh and pitched a scoreless inning that ended on a double-play ball. He left behind a bases-loaded jam in the eighth, but was bailed out when Alex Vesia got a fly ball to end the inning.

The ninth belonged to newly ascendant closer Roki Sasaki, who continued his late-season resurgence as a reliever by working around a one-out double to Max Kepler to collect his first career save.

And when the final out was recorded, somber Phillies fans filed out into a quiet night.

“We knew we were going to be winning in the seventh inning. He said it,” Rojas said, referring to Bates’ speech one more time. “He said that we were going to have an opportunity to come back in the game, and it happened. The guys stuck together. ... That’s why we’re a team.”

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This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.