Chicago Cubs Score and Recap (4/11/25): Dodgers 3, Cubs 0 – Yamamoto, Dodgers Blank Cubs in Series Opener
The Cubs began possibly their most difficult road trip of the season at Dodger Stadium on Friday night. It was an old-fashioned pitcher’s duel at first, but in the end, Los Angeles came away on top after one big inning.
Yoshinobu Yamamoto was razor-sharp on Friday, keeping Chicago bats quiet all game long. Los Angeles hitters had just as much trouble figuring out Matthew Boyd, who matched his counterpart, and the contest remained scoreless through five frames.
Boyd had his first real trouble in the bottom of the 6th when a single and a hit by pitch put two on with one out for Tommy Edman. The former Cardinal jumped on an off-speed pitch that was below the zone and crushed a go-ahead three-run homer that gave the Dodgers a 3-0 lead.
That was pretty much it for this one as the Cubs could never get anything going against the bullpen and LA finished off the 3-0 victory. (Box score)
Key Moment
Kyle Tucker doubled with one out in the 4th inning and Seiya Suzuki followed him with a single to right field. Tucker held up at third but Suzuki broke for second expecting a play at the plate. Freddie Freeman cut-off the throw and tagged out Suzuki. The Cubs never threatened again.
Why the Cubs Lost
The Dodgers pitching staff completely dominated the entire game and gave up nothing.
Stats That Matter
- A quality start for Boyd against a very good team, he just got no run support: 6 IP, 3 R, 4 H, 7 K, 3 BB.
- The Cubs had a total of three base runners the entire game.
Bottom Line
Yamamoto dominated in his performance on Friday. The Cubs were completely overwhelmed and it hurts to waste such a good effort from Boyd but there isn’t much you can do sometimes when a dominant starter is on his game. With Justin Steele‘s status up in the air this might be a rough trip for Chicago. Just avoiding a sweep in both series may be the best outcome.
On Deck
The two squads meet again Saturday night at 8:10pm CT. Ben Brown takes the hill against another Japanese star, Roki Sasaki, with a broadcast available on Marquee with radio coverage on 670 The Score.
