D-backs' Biggest Weakness Exposed by Dodgers in Ugly Opening Day Loss

The Arizona Diamondbacks led 2-0 through four innings in Los Angeles, but were ultimately blown out by the Dodgers 8-2 in their opening day matchup.

To some degree, a rough outcome was always a serious possibility, given the star-studded nature of the Dodgers' lineup. But the Diamondbacks' biggest weakness was put on full display in Los Angeles: an extremely shaky pitching staff — both on the starting and relieving end.

Diamondbacks' biggest weakness exposed by Dodgers

Diamondbacks pitcher Zac Gallen (23) reacts after allowing two runs against the Brewers during a spring training game at Salt River Fields on March 20, 2026. | Patrick Breen/The Republic / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

It began with Zac Gallen. Gallen had been working efficiently and effectively through four innings, getting swing-and-miss on his secondary pitches and showcasing a 94.1 MPH average fastball velocity. Things looked to be going well.

But Gallen ran into a blowup inning in the fifth — a type of inning that was somewhat frequent during his rough 2025 season. A pair of ground balls became singles, and a poor location to Andy Pages became a three-run homer, flipping the score to 3-2 in favor of L.A.

Two more baserunners followed before Juan Morillo entered to replace Gallen. The flamethrowing reliever allowed Gallen's fourth run to come across before shutting down the inning.

"There's a lot of energy coming in here," Gallen said postgame (h/t Arizona Sports on X). "Tough team to play. From a personal standpoint, I think it was pretty good. I feel like we had everything working for the most part.

"Four singles and a homer. Tough to make one of the few mistakes and it leaves the ballpark. ... Not one I'm going to necessarily beat myself up about, really. But we mixed pretty good, executed everything in the strike zone for the most part. Just one curveball kind of backed up."

And yet, it was still a game within reach — until a brutal relief performance in the seventh inning put comeback hopes to rest. Right-hander Taylor Clarke hit Shohei Ohtani with a pitch, then gave up a double, single and two-run homer. A two-run deficit ballooned to 8-2, and the Diamondbacks were unable to recover from that point.

Arizona did get some quality pitching. Right-hander Ryan Thompson threw a scoreless frame. Andrew Hoffmann worked out of some trouble to pick up 1.2 scoreless innings.

But the concerns about Arizona's pitching staff were anything but alleviated. After a brutal season of pitching in 2025, the D-backs did not begin 2026 on a much more positive note from the mound.

Diamondbacks' offense stalls vs Dodgers

Mar 26, 2026; Los Angeles, California, USA; Arizona Diamondbacks infielder Geraldo Perdomo (2) reacts after hitting a 398 foot two run home run to right field against Los Angeles Dodgers starting pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto (not pictured) during the fourth inning at Dodger Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images | Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

The Diamondbacks' offense was almost entirely a result of Geraldo Perdomo. The D-backs star shortstop crushed a two-run homer in the fourth inning, rewarding a Corbin Carroll single to give Arizona an early lead.

But the Diamondbacks also wasted opportunities to put up crooked numbers. Perdomo was thrown out following a single in the first inning, and a baserunning error by Jordan Lawlar led to an inning-ending double play in the third.

Both times, the D-backs had Dodgers righty Yoshinobu Yamamoto on the ropes, only to come away empty. Arizona's 4-9 hitters went a collective 3-for-19 at the plate, struggling to produce or get on base for the dangerous top of the order.

Lawlar, however, did lace a double down the left field line off Yamamoto. The ball came off the bat at 100 MPH. It was an encouraging sign to see Lawlar collect an extra-base knock off a right-hander, continuing a positive spring training trend.