Cody Bellinger hit a home run against his old team, and Shota Imanaga pitched four scoreless innings in a rain-interrupted start as the Chicago Cubs defeated the Los Angeles Dodgers 8-1 on Sunday.
Imanaga was taken out of the game after it resumed following a nearly three-hour rain delay. He allowed only two singles, struck out three batters, and walked none, extending his streak of not giving up any runs to 10 innings in his first two MLB starts.
The Cubs won their sixth game out of seven. They won two out of three in a series that featured four of the top Japanese players in the majors.
Shohei Ohtani doubled to bring in Mookie Betts in the eighth inning, scoring the Dodgers’ only run. Ohtani also hit a triple in the sixth inning, but Freddie Freeman grounded out to end the inning.
Yency Almonte (1-0) struck out two batters in a scoreless inning to earn the win against his former team. Daniel Palencia pitched three innings for his first career save.
The game was stopped due to rain with the Cubs leading 6-0 in the bottom of the fourth inning. The wet conditions made playing difficult, with the third baseman Miguel Rojas mentioning playing in a puddle of water.
During the delay, the crowd cheered as the women’s college basketball championship game between Iowa and South Carolina was shown on the videoboard.
The series brought together members of Team Japan from the 2023 World Baseball Classic. Imanaga, who signed a $53 million, four-year contract with the Cubs in January, struck out Ohtani in the first inning after being behind 3-1 in the count.
Ohtani, who signed a record $700 million, 10-year contract with the Dodgers in December, hit a two-run homer in his first game at Wrigley Field on Friday.
Seiya Suzuki drove in a run with a sacrifice fly for Chicago in the second inning of the final game of the series. Suzuki has 10 RBIs in his last five games.
