It was Demon Slayer Night at Dodger Stadium on Friday.
And not just because the team was running a stadium-wide promotion for an anime television show of the same name.
By beating the San Diego Padres 3-2 in the opener of a pivotal three-game rivalry series, the Dodgers slayed some recently troublesome demons of their own.
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They moved back into a tie with the Padres for first place in the National League West.
They got six strong innings from Clayton Kershaw; plus, in a refreshing change of pace, plenty of crisp, clean defense behind him.
Read more: Dodgers’ Max Muncy to miss several weeks because of oblique strain
And though a lineup that lost Max Muncy to the injured list with an oblique strain before the game was largely contained by the Padres (who had to go with a bullpen game after scheduled starter Michael King was shelved with a knee injury), the bullpen finally managed to protect a late, narrow lead for what felt like the first time in several weeks.
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“Just a really well-played ball game,” manager Dave Roberts said. “We needed it.”
Indeed, the Dodgers came into this weekend’s rivalry series reeling in a way that once seemed impossible for this year’s $400-million team.
Since July 4, they were just 12-21. What was a nine-game division lead had been transformed into a one-game deficit by the Padres, who came to Los Angeles riding high thanks to a monster trade deadline and a recent 14-3 streak.
More dark clouds arrived a few hours before first pitch, as well, when Muncy, who missed Wednesday’s game with side soreness, was placed on the injured list with a Grade 1 oblique strain, sidelining him for at least the next several weeks.
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It didn’t mean the Dodgers were panicking. Before the game, Roberts quipped that, no, actually, “tonight’s not Game 7 of the World Series.” His players had echoed that same message this week, preaching the need to remain level-headed and remember the calendar still had plenty of baseball ahead.
“It’s August,” Kershaw said. “It’s not the end of the world.”
Still, the season was starting to feel nonetheless on the brink, with the Dodgers searching for answers to their recently inconsistent offense, unsound fundamentals and untrustworthy bullpen (which had squandered five games in the last two weeks).
“I don’t like to be embarrassed. I don’t think our players do [either],” Roberts said before the game. “So this series, I’m expecting high intensity and high…