The Los Angeles Dodgers, sparked by Andy Pages's three-run homer, launched their bid for a World Series three-peat with an 8-2 victory over Arizona on Thursday on a historic day of Major League Baseball season openers.

Dodgers pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto, the reigning World Series Most Valuable Player, pitched six strong innings, both runs he allowed coming on Geraldo Perdomo's two-run homer in the fourth that staked the Diamondbacks to a 2-0 lead.

Diamondback starting pitcher Zac Gallen gave up a leadoff single to Dodgers superstar Shohei Ohtani, but retired 12 of the next 13 batters he faced before the Dodgers offense heated up in the fifth inning.

Max Muncy and Teoscar Hernandez led off the fifth with base hits and Pages followed with the first home run of the Dodgers' three-peat bid into the left field seats.

They chased Gallen later in the inning, adding another run on a single by Will Smith – who added a two-run homer in a four-run seventh inning.

The evening at Dodger Stadium started with the Dodgers celebrating their 2025 title before opening their bid for a rare third straight title run.

"There's obviously going to be a lot of talk about it, but I think our guys are trying to just think about winning a game today," manager Dave Roberts said. "It's out there, but you've got to kind of block it out and focus." (AFP)


Edited by Tony Sabine