Skubal makes Dodger Stadium debut as Dodgers rally past Royals

LOS ANGELES — There are nights when a baseball team wins because everything clicks. Monday night at Dodger Stadium was not one of those nights.

The Dodgers beat the Royals, 6-5, in a game that asked them to withstand an uneven home debut from Tarik Skubal, a blown lead in the seventh and more late-inning tension than anyone wearing Dodger blue probably wanted.

And yet, when it was over, the Dodgers had exactly what they needed.

A win.

At 71-48, the Dodgers opened this seven-game homestand by doing something that has become increasingly important as the season moves toward its most consequential stretch: they found a way to win a game that didn't always look like it belonged to them.

“There's going to be no panic out of this clubhouse,” Freddie Freeman said afterward.

That may have been the most important takeaway from the night.

Because there was plenty to panic about. Skubal's first start at Dodger Stadium was a grind from the beginning. The reigning ace didn't have his best command, his pitch count climbed early and, for only the fourth time in 18 starts this season, he failed to make it through the sixth inning.

He lasted five innings, allowing four hits and three earned runs while walking two and hitting another batter. He struck out six, throwing 95 pitches, 66 for strikes.

The most damaging pitch came with two strikes.

Skubal left an 0-2 slider over the plate, and Royals’ Jac Caglianone didn't miss it.

The result was a two-run homer and a 3-0 Kansas City lead.

For all the anticipation surrounding Skubal's arrival in Los Angeles, this wasn't the kind of debut anyone would have scripted.

But perhaps the most encouraging part of his night was that he never let the outing unravel.

“I thought I competed well and gave our team a chance to win,” Skubal said. “Our offense picked me up big time, defense picked me up big time, and the bullpen was outstanding tonight. All in all, a good team win, especially when I don't feel like I performed up to my standard.”

That last part matters.

Skubal has now made two starts as a Dodger, totaling 11 innings with 12 strikeouts. He has allowed five earned runs.

Neither start has been dominant.

And Skubal's introduction to Los Angeles has been about more than his numbers anyway.

He continues to rave about the organization and the clubhouse, saying he felt the support almost immediately after joining the team in Chicago. On Monday, he got his first real taste of the environment at Dodger Stadium.

He was stunned by it.

“It felt like there were 40- 50 thousand fans 40 minutes before the game in their seats,” Skubal said. “Is it Monday?”

The fans showed up for him.

The offense eventually showed up for him, too.

Down 3-0, the Dodgers began chipping away in the third inning.

Hunter Feduccia doubled to start the inning. Shohei Ohtani followed with an RBI double, and Freddie Freeman brought Ohtani home with another double to cut the deficit to one.

Then, in the sixth, the Dodgers finally delivered the kind of blow that changes a game.

Kyle Tucker walked to load the bases, bringing Max Muncy to the plate on his bobblehead night. Muncy made the moment count.

His bases-clearing hit, officially recorded as a double, put the Dodgers ahead 5-3.

For a moment, it looked as though the Dodgers had taken control. Then came the seventh. After Skubal and Alex Vesia exited with the Dodgers holding that two-run advantage, Jack Dreyer couldn't protect it.

The lead lasted three batters. Royals No. 9 hitter Kyle Isbel launched a two-run homer, tying the game at five.

Another Dodgers lead had disappeared.

But unlike some recent games, the Dodgers didn't let the frustration linger. They answered immediately. Ohtani singled. Then he stole second, his first stolen base in almost three months and only his seventh of the season.

And Freeman, who had already collected two hits, came through again.

His RBI single to right brought Ohtani home.

6-5 Dodgers. It would be the last run either team scored.

Freeman finished 3-for-4 with two RBIs, providing the kind of veteran presence the Dodgers have relied on so often during seasons when the margin for error gets smaller.

“It was nice,” Freeman said. “50 thousand-plus on a Monday night, it felt like the fans were trying to will us to win tonight.”

They had to.

Because the ninth inning belonged to Edwin Díaz.

And for once, there was no drama.

Díaz needed only a 1-2-3 ninth inning to lock down the victory. He finished the job emphatically, pumping his fist as the Dodgers celebrated a win that had been anything but straightforward.

Dave Roberts saw something he wanted to see.

“I saw that urgency tonight, which we got to build on from here on out,” Roberts said.

That urgency may ultimately matter more than Monday's victory. The Dodgers didn't dominate.

Skubal didn't have his best stuff. Dreyer surrendered the lead. The bullpen had to navigate some uncomfortable moments. The offense went quiet for stretches before coming alive late.

But the Dodgers scored four runs over their final three innings at the plate. They responded every time Kansas City put pressure on them. And when the game reached its final three outs, Díaz made sure there was no second comeback.

Baseball seasons are long enough that wins rarely come exactly how a team wants them to. The good teams learn to take them anyway. The Dodgers did that Monday.

It wasn't pretty. It didn't need to be.

At 71-48, with seven games at home and a long stretch of baseball still ahead, the Dodgers can build on a night like this.

As Freeman said, there will be no panic. Just another win to add to the pile.