FREDDIE FREEMAN had two home runs in the Dodgers’ 5-4 win (AP photo).

Andy Pages’ sacrifice fly in the top of the ninth brought in Alex Call with the winning run as the Los Angeles Dodgers defeated the San Diego Padres 5-4 on Tuesday night.

The razor-close victory pushed the Blue Crew into first place over the home team by a half-game in the National League West.

It took nine pitches in the duel between Pages and Padres’ closer Mason Miller to decide the outcome.
Each team scored a pair of runs in the first inning, and then the Padres (now 29-19) took a 4-2 lead with two more runs in the third. The Dodgers scored single runs in the fifth and sixth to set up the decisive ninth.

Freddie Freeman hit two homers for the Dodgers (30-19) and ended up with three RBIs. Shohei Ohtani was 2-for-3 with a run batted in.

The two teams will play again on Wednesday.

A’s hammer Angels, 14-6

Six runs would normally make for a pretty good game for the Los Angeles Angels, but not when the other team – the Athletics – starts off with a six-run lead.

The team got 10 hits but stranded 10 batters and not even Mike Trout’s 12th home run of the season was very comforting as the Orange County team suffered its seventh loss in eight games.

The outcome allowed the first place A’s to remain in first place in the AL West at 24-24. The Angels (17-32) sunk further into last place with the worst record in Major League Baseball.