LOS ANGELES (Interstat) — In a taut pitchers’ duel that defied pregame projections, the Los Angeles Dodgers edged the New York Mets 2-1 on Tuesday night at Dodger Stadium, securing their second consecutive victory in the series before a crowd of 48,138.

The game, which concluded in a brisk 2 hours and 3 minutes, was a stark contrast to the offensive showdown many anticipated. Interstat’s game simulator had projected a 7-3 Dodgers win, with an over/under line set at 8 runs. The teams combined for only seven hits and three total runs, with the deciding tally coming on a soft, eighth-inning fly ball that barely found grass.

The most important sequence of the game unfolded in the bottom of the eighth, breaking a 1-1 deadlock that had persisted since the first inning. Mets reliever Brooks Raley, who took the loss to fall to 0-1, issued a leadoff walk to pinch-hitter Miguel Rojas. Santiago Espinal’s sacrifice bunt moved Rojas to second, prompting an intentional walk to the dangerous Shohei Ohtani. That brought up Kyle Tucker, who fought off a pitch and floated a soft fly ball into shallow left field. The Mets’ Carson Benge charged in but could not make a play, as the ball dropped for a single, scoring Rojas with the go-ahead run.

That clutch hit made a winner of Dodgers reliever Blake Treinen, who improved to 1-0 after recording the final out of the top of the eighth. Alex Vesia then slammed the door in the ninth, striking out the side in order to earn his second save of the season and seal the Dodgers’ 13th win against four losses. The Mets fell to 7-11 with their fifth loss in six games.

The late drama overshadowed a magnificent starting pitching matchup between the Dodgers’ Yoshinobu Yamamoto and the Mets’ Nolan McLean. Both right-handers delivered gems, with neither factoring in the decision.

Yamamoto, named the Dodgers’ top star, continued his excellent early-season form. He pitched into the eighth inning, allowing one run on four hits while striking out seven. His only mistake came on the game’s very first pitch, which Francisco Lindor drove over the right-field wall for a solo home run, giving the Mets an immediate 1-0 lead.

McLean was even more dominant for much of the night. Over seven strong innings, he held a potent Dodgers lineup to just two hits and one run, matching a career-high with eight strikeouts. The Dodgers managed to scratch across a run against him in the bottom of the first to answer Lindor’s homer. After a walk to Tucker and a double by Will Smith, Freddie Freeman grounded out to first, allowing Tucker to score and tie the game.

From that point, both starters imposed their will. Yamamoto retired 15 of 16 batters at one point, while McLean set down 13 in a row during the middle innings. The Mets threatened only briefly against Yamamoto in the eighth, putting runners at the corners with two outs on singles by Benge and Lindor, but Treinen entered and struck out Luis Robert Jr. to end the inning.

The Dodgers’ victory reinforced their strong start to the 2026 campaign, while the Mets continued to search for consistency, particularly on offense. The teams conclude their three-game series on Wednesday at Dodger Stadium. The Mets will then travel to Chicago to open a three-game set with the Cubs on Friday, while the Dodgers begin a four-game series in Colorado on Friday.