Detmers' duel with Sasaki ends in walk off defeat for Angels

LOS ANGELES – The last time the Los Angeles Angels faced off against the Los Angeles Dodgers, it didn’t go so well. They suffered a three-game sweep where they were outscored by nearly 30 runs. And that was at home. 

On Friday night, the Angels kicked off round two of the Freeway Series, this time in enemy territory at Dodger Stadium. 

“You’re both 45 minutes to an hour away from each other. Obviously, it’s a big deal for the fans and for us too,” Angels manager Kurt Suzuki said before the game. “As you do any game, you try to not put so much emphasis where it might tighten you up a little bit.”

Reid Detmers last 3 starts:

1.89 ERA
19 IP
27 Ks

Is he the Angels ACE right now? pic.twitter.com/kGibZvaJRR

— SleeperAngels (@SleeperAngels) June 6, 2026

It was a very different game compared to the last time the crosstown rivals faced off. Rather than an offensive explosion from the Dodgers’ side of things, it was an intense pitcher’s duel between Reid Detmers and Roki Sasaki. 

Sasaki vs. Detmers

Sasaki had the best start of his career the last time he faced the Angels and this time around he improved on his outing. He went seven innings of scoreless baseball while allowing just two hits and two walks and striking out a career-high 10 batters. 

Sasaki held the Angels hitless until the top of the fifth inning when Nick Madrigal laced a double to the left field wall, but that was the farthest any Angel would make it on the base paths while Sasaki was in charge. 

Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images

Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Roki Sasaki (11) walks off the mound during the first inning against the Los Angeles Angels at Dodger Stadium.

“He was tough man,” Suzuki said of Sasaki. “I haven’t seen him pitch like this, ever. He was sitting 98, 99, 100 with a nasty split and slider.”

Detmers was a much similar case. He went six scoreless innings, also allowing just two hits and two walks. He’s has continued to have somewhat of a hot-and-cold season, but recently he’s been able to chain together several stellar starts in a row, Friday included. 

A night to remember for Roki Sasaki 👏

All 10 of his strikeouts from tonight ⬇️ https://t.co/FPwmCyYGzIpic.twitter.com/p1d4V9bq1R

— MLB (@MLB) June 6, 2026

The nature of the duel between Sasaki and Detmers was one of opposites. Sasaki’s style is defined by his blinding power, blowing fast balls that flirt with 100 MPH past his opponents while even his off speed stuff, including his signature splitter, sit above 90 MPH.

Demers, on the other hand, is much more of a finesse pitcher. To be fair, he’s no slouch.

“I thought he was attacking good with his fastball, throwing strikes, making them swing the bat. I thought he was good the whole night… That was one of the best games I’ve seen pitch.”

-Kurt Suzuki on Reid Detmers’ performance, where he went 6 IP, 0 ER, 2 H and 2 BB

— Jack Haslett (@JackHaslett_13) June 6, 2026

His fastball hovered around 95 MPH, but the real star of the show for Detmers was his breaking and off-speed stuff, particularly his changeup and slider. 

Detmers went six scoreless innings, allowing his two hits and two walks against the most offensively formidable lineup in baseball while striking out six. Suzuki called it “probably the best” he’s seen him pitch, and that’s including his eight inning performance earlier in the season and of course, his 2022 no-hitter. 

Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images

Los Angeles Angels pitcher Reid Detmers (48) pitches during the third inning against the Los Angeles Dodgers at Dodger Stadium.

“Just keep them off balance,” Detmers said. “That’s kind of the game plan… I’ve faced them [Dodgers] a lot and they kind of know what to expect. You have to switch it up every once in a while.”

Bullpen takes over

Even after both Sasaki and Detmers retired for the night, the pitching duel continued. Detmers was succeeded first by Chase Silseth in the seventh and Sam Bachman in the eighth, both former rotation mates of his, who combined to strikeout three and not allow a hit in two innings. 

Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images

Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Tanner Scott (66) pitches during the ninth inning against the Los Angeles Angels at Dodger Stadium.

The Dodgers bullpen was similarly impressive, though Tanner Scott ran into some trouble in the top of the ninth after Jo Adell blooped in a hit and was bunted over by Donovan Walton, though that ultimately went nowhere. 

That brought the game to the bottom of the ninth, where Kirby Yates stepped in to try and preserve the 0-0 tie. 

Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images

Los Angeles Angels relief pitcher Kirby Yates (39) walks to the dugout after giving up a walk-off solo home run to Los Angeles Dodgers first baseman Freddie Freeman (5) in the ninth inning against the Los Angeles Angels at Dodger Stadium.

The first batter Yates faced was none other than Freddie Freeman, Yates’ teammate last season when the closer was a member of the championship-winning Dodgers. 

Yates fell behind early, then worked the count full.

FREDDIE FREEMAN CALLS GAME

WALK-OFF HOMER IN THE 9TH 🚀 pic.twitter.com/H9CvcZKVRz

— MLB (@MLB) June 6, 2026

Freeman took hold of the very next pitch, a 91.6 MPH fast ball in the upper-middle part of the plate, and sent it flying high and far into the left field seats for a walk off home run and the first run of the game for either team.

“It’s always frustrating,” Yates said of the loss. “There’s nothing I can really do about it now. [I] can’t sit here and second guess, ‘Maybe I should have thrown a split,’ or anything else like that. He could have popped it up, and he did. It just went over the fence.”