LOS ANGELES (Interstat) — Freddie Freeman drove in two runs with a home run and a run-scoring single, and Yoshinobu Yamamoto pitched seven innings of four-hit ball as the Los Angeles Dodgers defeated the San Diego Padres 3-0 on Saturday at Dodger Stadium.

The game was a pitcher’s duel between Yamamoto and Padres starter Griffin Canning. Yamamoto struck out seven and walked one while holding the Padres to four hits. Canning allowed two runs on four hits in six innings, striking out five and walking two.

The Dodgers took a 1-0 lead in the third inning. Dalton Rushing drew a one-out walk and advanced to second on an Alex Freeland single. After Tommy Edman struck out, Andy Pages singled to left field, scoring Rushing. Freeman then struck out to end the inning.

Los Angeles extended its lead in the sixth inning. Freeman led off by hitting his 15th home run of the season to right-center field off Canning. The solo shot made it 2-0. Mookie Betts grounded out to shortstop and Kyle Tucker flied out to shortstop before Teoscar Hernandez struck out to end the inning.

Will Klein pitched the ninth inning for the Dodgers, retiring all three batters he faced on eight pitches to earn his second save. He struck out one.

The Dodgers added an insurance run in the eighth inning against Padres reliever Wandy Peralta. Tommy Edman was hit by a pitch, advanced to second on an Andy Pages groundout, and scored on Freeman’s single to center field. Freeman’s two-hit night raised his average on the season.

The Padres threatened in the top of the eighth inning. Fernando Tatis Jr. doubled with two outs, his 17th double of the season, but Jake Cronenworth struck out on a foul tip to end the inning.

Yamamoto improved to 9-5 on the season. He allowed four hits and one walk while striking out seven. Brock Stewart pitched 0.2 innings of hitless relief and Alex Vesia retired the one batter he faced.

Canning fell to 1-6 on the season. He allowed two runs on four hits over six innings, striking out five and walking two. The Padres recorded only four hits in the game, with Tatis, Gavin Sheets, Xander Bogaerts, and Tatis again all picking up singles. Tatis also doubled in the eighth inning.

The Dodgers offense managed five hits. Freeman had two hits, including his home run, and drove in two runs. Mookie Betts doubled to lead off the bottom of the first inning, but Freeman was thrown out at the plate trying to score from first base.

The game was played in a crisp 2 hours and 29 minutes before an announced crowd of 52,284.

The win improved the Dodgers to 59-31 on the season, the best record in the National League. The Padres dropped to 43-45, falling further below .500.

The most critical sequence of the game occurred in the bottom of the third inning, when the Dodgers broke the scoreless tie. Rushing worked a one-out walk, and Freeland followed with a soft line drive single that put runners on first and second. After Edman struck out, Pages hit a ground ball single through the left side of the infield, scoring Rushing to give the Dodgers a 1-0 lead. The play not only gave the Dodgers the lead but also put extra pressure on Canning, who had pitched effectively in the early innings.

The Padres had a scoring opportunity in the first inning when Tatis led off with a sharp single and later advanced to third on a line drive single by Sheets. But Manny Machado struck out and Ty France struck out to end the threat.

In the second inning, the Padres put another runner on when Bogaerts singled with one out. But Jackson Merrill lined into an unassisted double play, with Bogaerts out at first base.

Freeman’s home run in the sixth inning provided the Dodgers with a crucial insurance run. The solo shot capped a sequence where Canning had been pitching well, but Freeman took advantage of a pitch on the inner half of the plate and drove it over the wall in right-center.

The Padres mounted a final threat in the eighth inning when Tatis doubled with two outs, but Cronenworth struck out to end the inning. The game ended when Klein set down the Padres in order in the ninth inning.

The Dodgers have now won four of their last five games against the Padres, including the two games in this series. San Diego has lost six of its last seven games.

The Padres will conclude the series Sunday with right-hander Dylan Cease taking the mound for San Diego against Dodgers left-hander James Paxton.

Interstat’s game simulator had projected a final score of Los Angeles Dodgers 7, San Diego Padres 4. Interstat’s ELO system had projected the Dodgers with a 66.40 percent probability to win. The Dodgers had been installed as a pregame favorite with a spread of minus-1.5. The total score of 3 went over the over-under line of 8.5.