The Los Angeles Dodgers closed their 2026 regular-season home schedule with a 7-0 shutout of the San Diego Padres, putting the result at the center of US baseball conversation ahead of the playoffs. Shohei Ohtani was listed as the Dodgers’ leadoff hitter, while catcher Will Smith was out of the starting lineup.
The game was played on September 22, 2026, according to ESPN’s game recap. Los Angeles scored seven runs and held San Diego scoreless, producing a clear result in the clubs’ final meeting at Dodger Stadium during the regular season.
What happened in the Dodgers-Padres game?
The Dodgers defeated the Padres 7-0, ESPN reported. San Diego did not score, giving Los Angeles a shutout in the final regular-season home game of the year.
The score is the central fact driving interest in the matchup: Los Angeles finished its home schedule with a seven-run victory over San Diego, one of the most closely followed matchups for baseball fans on the West Coast and across the United States. ESPN’s recap identifies the date and final score, while True Blue LA’s coverage framed the game as the Dodgers’ last home contest before the playoffs.
Because the available headlines do not include a full box score, the confirmed account is straightforward: the Dodgers scored seven runs, the Padres scored none, and Los Angeles completed its final regular-season home game with a win. No individual scoring totals or pitching lines are established by the supplied headlines.
Was Will Smith in the Dodgers lineup?
No. Yahoo Sports reported that Will Smith was out of the Dodgers’ lineup for the game against San Diego. The report identified Smith’s absence as part of the pregame lineup news, but it did not establish a reason for the decision.
That distinction matters as the regular season moves toward the playoffs. Smith’s status was one of the main lineup questions surrounding the game, and Yahoo Sports paired the update with news that Ohtani would lead off. The headline does not say whether Smith was available as a reserve, nor does it provide a medical update or other explanation.
The confirmed point is that Smith was not in the starting lineup. His role during the game is not established by the supplied coverage.
Did Shohei Ohtani lead off for the Dodgers?
Yes. Yahoo Sports reported that Ohtani was leading off for Los Angeles against the Padres. The move put one of the Dodgers’ best-known players at the top of the order for the club’s final regular-season home game.
The headline confirms Ohtani’s place in the batting order, but it does not provide his individual statistics from the game. The Dodgers’ seven-run total and the 7-0 final score are confirmed by ESPN. That means the team’s offensive result is clear even though the supplied reports do not identify which players produced the runs.
Why was this game important for the Dodgers?
The game marked the Dodgers’ final regular-season home appearance before the playoffs, according to True Blue LA. That setting gave the matchup added significance beyond the score: it was Los Angeles’ last home game before the postseason stage.
True Blue LA’s pregame coverage focused on the meeting with San Diego and referenced Tyler Glasnow and Nick Pivetta in its headline. The supplied headline does not provide enough detail to describe either player’s role in the game, so their performances should not be inferred from the preview alone.
For Los Angeles, the confirmed takeaway is its closing home result: a 7-0 win over San Diego. For the Padres, the game ended in a shutout. The next phase is the playoffs, but the supplied reports do not provide the postseason bracket, dates, or either team’s specific playoff assignment.
The combination of the final home-game setting, Ohtani’s place at leadoff, Smith’s absence from the starting lineup, and the decisive score explains why “Padres-Dodgers” is trending. The result is official in ESPN’s September 22 recap, while Yahoo Sports supplied the key lineup details and True Blue LA provided the pre-playoff context.