San Francisco Gians Heliot Ramos slugs a two run double in the top of the sixth inning against the Los Angeles Dodgers at Dodgers Stadium in Los Angeles on Mon May 11, 2026 (AP News photo)

By Barbara Mason

This game got off to a bit of a slow start for both the San Francisco Giants (17-24) and the Los Angeles Dodgers (24-17) on Monday night but San Francisco busted this game wide open in the seventh inning.

The Giants hit three singles in a row, a walk, another single and when the dust had settled had scored three runs taking a 6-3 lead. The Giants had a most productive ninth inning scoring three times. The final was 9-3.

Game recap: Records do not matter when these two teams clash. Just about anything can happen. In their last series it was the San Francisco Giants who won the series 2-1. The Dodgers will be looking to tie that up with a series win Monday night.

It was a three and out for the Giants in the first inning and the Dodgers went down quickly leaving Freddie Freeman stranded on second base.

This game went into the second inning with San Francisco looking for their first hit. The Giants got that first hit, a big one, from Rafael Devers his fifth home run of the season taking the early lead 1-0. The score remained 1-0 in favor of the Giants going into the third inning. Los Angeles went three and out in the inning.

The Giants got something going in the top of the third inning loading the bases with only one out and Devers at the plate. Sasaki got out of the inning and the Giants had failed to cash in on a great scoring opportunity. The Dodgers had Hernandez on third but left him stranded. So far the difference in this game was the Devers home run.

The Dodgers got a rally going in the bottom of the fourth with three singles (Freeman, Tucker, Smith) in a row loading the bases with no outs. Max Muncy hit the Dodgers fourth single in a row, Freddie Freeman scored and this game was tied 1-1 with the bases remaining loaded no outs. San Francisco got a double play in the inning limiting the damage but Kyle Tucker scored giving the Dodgers their first lead of the game 2-1 going into the fifth.

San Francisco went three and out in the top of the fifth inning. Los Angeles’ Mookie Betts singled and Tucker walked but McDonald got out of the inning and it was on to the sixth inning with the Dodgers still leading 2-1 in a close game.

San Francisco rallied in the sixth with two runners on second and third base with no outs. Another great scoring opportunity for San Francisco. Heliot Ramos doubled and Rafael Devers and Schmitt both scored taking back the lead 3-2. The lead was short-lived in the bottom of the sixth inning when Muncy hit a solo home run to tie this game back up 3-3.

San Francisco loaded the bases in the top of the seventh inning with one out. Dodger relief pitcher Alex Vesia lasted 1/3 of the inning and after walking a run in (Jung Hoo Lee) was relieved by Will Klein who faced the bases loaded situation. Adames came to the plate and singled driving home two runners Luis Arraez and Schmitt. San Francisco had broken this game open taking a 6-3 lead. The Dodgers went down in order to end the seventh.

With not much going on in the eighth inning, this game went into the top of the ninth inning. San Francisco again threatened with the bases loaded (Ramos, Devers and Schmitt) and no outs. Again Adames came through with a single and Schmitt extending the San Francisco lead 7-3.

Another walk for the Giants and Devers scored still with no outs now leading 8-3. The Dodgers finally got two outs in an inning that seemed to have no end. Three walks in a row for Los Angeles, four in total in the inning and this game was as good as done. Going into the bottom of the ninth it was a 9-3 San Francisco lead which turned out to be the final.

San Francisco had a productive offensive game tonight finishing with 12 hits and nine runs. The Dodgers fell short although they did have ten hits. The Los Angeles pitching was their downfall and the Giants took full advantage. It was also really good to see Willy Adames coming away with some huge hits.

Game notes: The Giants took on the Dodgers Monday night for a three-game series with their archrival. Whether playing down south at Dodger Stadium or in San Francisco these series are always highly anticipated. This series was played in Los Angeles with Roki Sasaki on the mound for the Dodgers. He has not had a great start and dropped his record to 1-5.

Sasaki pitched back on May 2 in a loss to St. Louis and prior to that a win for the Dodgers over the Cubs. The Giants starter Trevor McDonald who had a win under his belt against the San Diego Padres, in a game that was played May 4th.

Both of these teams have been struggling lately, although the Giants have really seen diminished production at the plate and watched their record take a nose-dive. The Giants have had flashes of some success but have fallen pretty flat in the middle of their lineup. The big news of the week was the trade of two-time Gold Glove winner Patrick Bailey to the Cleveland Guardians in a real stunner.

San Francisco will also be missing Logan Webb placed on IL for 15-days due to right knee bursitis. The Giants come into this series after winning two out of three in a series with the Pittsburgh Pirates while the Dodgers lost their last series to the Braves.

Tuesday night the Giants will be looking for a second win in this series and another guaranteed series win over the Dodgers. Adrian Houser will take the mound for the Giants with a 0-4 win/loss record and a 6.19 ERA. The Dodgers will start Yoshinobu Yamamoto. He has a 3-2 win/loss record and a 3.09 ERA. First pitch for this game is scheduled for 7:10 PM.