Teoscar Hernández grand slam flips the script in Padres victory

Teoscar Hernández hit his sixth career grand slam in the Dodgers’ 4–3 win on Friday at UNIQLO Field at Dodger Stadium. (Juan Ocampo/Los Angeles Dodgers)

by Senji Torrey

After recording just two hits over the first six innings to remain down 3–0, the Dodgers’ seventh inning began quietly with a walk to Mookie Betts.

Then a single by Max Muncy gave the stadium some hope, and a failed fielder’s choice showed the crack in the Padres momentum.

That was all Teoscar Hernández needed to see.

The man who went hitless in his last two games and first two at-bats of the night took the first pitch he saw over the center field wall for a grand slam.

It sharply handed the Dodgers the lead for good in the 4–3 Friday night victory at UNIQLO Field at Dodger Stadium. It also marked their second comeback victory of the series and 27th this season.

“It’s good to have a really good team, but I think the biggest thing is that we never give up,” Hernández said. “We believe in each other, we know what we can do, we know the players that we have, and we’re never out of the game. That’s our mentality every day we go onto the field.”

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The game-changing hit marked the sixth grand slam of Hernández’s career and the first since June 8, 2024, at Yankee Stadium.

“Teo, he’s missed a lot of time recently, and so for him to get back and contribute, there’s a lot of built-up kind of anxiousness and anticipation to do something to help us win,” manager Dave Roberts said.

Hernández missed nearly the whole of June due to a left hamstring strain, making Friday his fourth game back.

His rehab assignment with Triple-A Oklahoma City hinted at his coming power as three of his four hits went over the wall.

Before his injury stint, the 33-year-old remained a reliable middleman in the lineup, slashing .276/.348/.436/.785 with 15 extra-base hits and 31 RBI.

“(I was) just trying to find the same swing that I had before I got hurt, and at the same time just doing something for the team, and it happened to be a big swing,” Hernández said.

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Shohei Ohtani fought through six innings on the mound, ultimately striking out nine while giving up three runs over a season-high 110 pitches, including his first run concession in the first inning this season.

“I thought he threw the ball really well. I thought he gave us a chance to win,” said Dalton Rushing, Ohtani’s batterymate on Friday. “I felt tonight I had a good idea of what he was trying to do.

“He’s not an easy guy to call for, but … (that’s because there’s) a lot of pitches that are really good, a lot of options.”

Ohtani went 0-for-3 at the plate before being pulled as a precaution in the seventh inning due to a biceps tightening during his final at-bat. He will not bat tomorrow in the series closer against the Padres.

“It’s my right biceps. It’s the same location that I felt a couple months ago, and it went away relatively quickly, so I expect that to happen again,” Ohtani said.