Dodgers’ Will Smith Dismisses Padres Rivalry With Blunt Comment

Eight months after squaring off in the 2024 NLDS, the Los Angeles Dodgers and San Diego Padres finally met again.

The two NL West rivals picked up where they left off in their first regular-season meeting of 2025 on Monday. The game was an instant classic, going 10 innings and ending in an 8-7 Dodgers victory at Petco Park.

The clash featured a lot of scoring early on as both clubs came out swinging. There were 11 runs through the first three innings, not to mention five lead changes in the back-and-forth affair.

After Los Angeles tied the game at 6-6 in the top of the fifth, the score stayed that way until the 10th. The Dodgers scored two in the top of the frame and held on for the one-run victory.

While the game may have felt like a playoff battle to fans watching at home and in the stands, Los Angeles catcher Will Smith downplayed the intensity on the field.

"It felt like another game in June," Smith told reporters after the game, shrugging off questions about the postseason atmosphere.