SAN DIEGO (AP) — Andy Pages dug in against Mason Miller and simply refused to give in. The Dodgers' young slugger fouled off three triple-digit fastballs and three 87 mph sliders from San Diego's peerless closer in an epic at-bat Tuesday night.
Pages finally connected on the ninth pitch from Miller, driving the 101.5 mph fastball just far enough to score Los Angeles' tiebreaking run in the ninth inning of a stirring 5-4 victory over the Padres.
That was much more than just a sacrifice fly to the Dodgers, who handed Miller (1-1) his first loss in a San Diego uniform.
Pages proved once again that the World Series champions can handle anything their closest geographical rivals can throw their way — even if it's coming at 101 mph.
“That was one of the greatest at-bats I've ever seen in person,” Freddie Freeman said. “And I've been playing a long time. That was incredible.”
The Dodgers know they'll be matched up with Miller for years to come, and they've faced the reliever known as “The Reaper” in each of the first two games in their first series of the season against the Padres.
After Miller pitched his way out of a jam on Monday, the Dodgers manufactured an unearned run Tuesday to beat the star of San Diego's impressive bullpen. The Dodgers needed help from an ABS challenge and a hard-luck throwing error by Miller, but the hardest work was done by Pages, the Cuban center fielder who has been playing like a superstar this season, his third in the majors.
“Good plate appearance from Pages,” Miller said. “Good, long at-bat, and just barely got it done. Unfortunate, for sure.”
The RBI was Pages’ 42nd of the season — 17 more than four-time MVP Shohei Ohtani, and much more than World Series hero Freeman or big-money acquisition Kyle Tucker.
“The work he’s put in showed itself there, but I think at the end of the day, it was just fight,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said. “It was just will. Determination. Not worrying about mechanics and this and that. It’s just me versus you, and it was him versus Mason Miller, and he wasn’t going to lose that battle. Mason is the best in the game right now, and Andy willed himself to do something productive in that at-bat. ... It’s a fight, and Andy is a tough kid, and he’s hungry.”
The rally started with a one-out walk when Max Muncy successfully challenged a called third strike. Pinch-runner Alex Call should have been picked off first moments later — but Miller committed the first error of his MLB career on his throw to first when Ty France got a glove on it, but let it get by him.
“Sped up on me a little bit and yanked it,” Miller said. “Probably threw it a little harder than I should have, too. Obviously want it back, but it is what it is.”
Pages dug out of an 0-2 count in impressive fashion and eventually drove his fly ball 275 feet to right. Fernando Tatis Jr.’s throw home was cut off by Sung-mun Song, giving Call just enough time to slide home.
“The most important thing is to win,” Pages said through an interpreter. “To win at any cost. Doing that against a pitcher of that caliber is obviously really good, but I felt very confident the whole time through.”
The loss was Miller’s first since May 17, 2025 — a year and two days ago, while he still played for the Athletics. He hadn’t lost a decision or blown a save since last Aug. 5 in his second game after joining the Padres, who swung an audacious trade headlined by teenager Leo De Vries, one of the top prospects in baseball.
Miller likely has been the best reliever in baseball this season, leading the position by most WAR measurements and converting all 15 of his save opportunities to lead the majors. He was the NL reliever of the month for March/April, when he struck out 53.7% of the batters he faced and allowed one run and six hits across 15 appearances.
“We all know how good Miller has been, so having (Pages) grind it out, battle, spoil pitches — it was tremendous,” Call said. “Incredible job by Andy and the guys tonight.”
AP MLB: https://apnews.com/MLB
Los Angeles Dodgers' Alex Call, right, scores from third off a sacrifice fly by Andy Pages as San Diego Padres catcher Freddy Fermin is late with the catch during the ninth inning of a baseball game Tuesday, May 19, 2026, in San Diego. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull)
Los Angeles Dodgers' Andy Pages reacts after hitting a sacrifice fly during the ninth inning of a baseball game against the San Diego Padres Tuesday, May 19, 2026, in San Diego. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull)
San Diego Padres pitcher Mason Miller reacts after giving up a sacrifice fly during the ninth inning of a baseball game against the Los Angeles Dodgers Tuesday, May 19, 2026, in San Diego. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull)
BEIRUT (AP) — Israel struck the southern Beirut suburbs on Sunday just days after a ceasefire agreement in Washington went into effect.
A statement from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office said the strikes were in retaliation for the Hezbollah militant group firing toward northern Israel earlier, and that the attacks targeted “command centers” in the sprawling urban neighborhoods. Hezbollah did not immediately claim responsibility for firing at Israel.
The strikes come after the Lebanese and Israeli governments in Washington renewed a ceasefire agreement in ongoing talks that Beirut hopes will bring an end to the war across the country. There was no immediate word of casualties.
Israel had already struck the southern suburbs of the Lebanese capital twice since the first agreement between Lebanon and Israel went into effect on April 17. Strikes over southern Lebanon continue daily, meanwhile, and Hezbollah fighters and Israeli troops have also clashed.
Israel announced on Monday that it would strike the southern suburbs after Hezbollah claimed attacks in northern Israel, but last-gasp talks via Washington halted the attacks, on the condition that Hezbollah stop targeting Israel border towns.
Iran had warned that an attack on the Lebanese capital would trigger renewed full-scale war across the Mideast, amid ongoing efforts by Pakistan to restart talks between Tehran and Washington.
The Iranian-backed Hezbollah has rejected the U.S.-brokered deal and instead endorsed Iran’s demand that ending the war in Lebanon be part of the negotiations with the U.S.
The fighting in Lebanon, where Israeli forces have seized large swaths of the south in its latest ground invasion, threatens efforts to end the Iran war and reopen the Strait of Hormuz, a key transit point for oil and gas. Its closure has jolted the world economy.
Iran has demanded that any lasting truce extend to Lebanon. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who faces elections later this year, wants to press ahead with Israel’s offensive until he considers Hezbollah no longer poses a threat.
Lebanon’s army commander, Gen. Rodolphe Haikal, headed to Pakistan Saturday at the invitation of Pakistan’s army chief. The Lebanese army gave no further details and did not say whether it is related to Pakistan’s mediation between Iran and the U.S.
Meanwhile, Pakistan’s interior minister was in Tehran on Sunday in a fresh bid to restart negotiations between Iran and the U.S., as the American military said it shot down two more Iranian drones over the Strait of Hormuz that threatened international maritime traffic.
The latest action came as the U.S. administration presses Iran to make a deal to end the war in the Middle East, which has strained the global economy and threatened a hunger crisis in some of the world’s most vulnerable countries.
The heaviest fighting ended with a preliminary ceasefire on April 8, but the sides have not been able to agree on a long-term end to the war.
Pakistani Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi is in Tehran to deliver a message to Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei from Pakistan's army chief Field Marshal Asim Munir, according to Iranian state-run IRNA news agency.
Khamenei has not been seen in public since he was named the Islamic Republic’s ruler after his father was killed on the first day of the war on Feb. 28 when the U.S. and Israel lauched a bombardment campaign against Iran.
Naqvi met with Iranian Interior Minister Eskandar Momeni late Saturday, and held talks Sunday morning with Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, according to official Iranian media.
There were no details on the contents of the message. Pakistani authorities have said Islamabad, with support from regional countries including Qatar, Turkey and Egypt, has been working to help bridge differences between the United States and Iran and encourage efforts aimed at reducing tensions and ensuring the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz.
The U.S. military said Saturday that it had shot down several Iranian missiles and drones launched toward the Strait of Hormuz and Gulf Arab allies, and struck some of the Islamic Republic’s coastal surveillance radar sites in response.
“The attack drones posed an immediate threat to regional maritime traffic,” U.S. Central Command said.
Iran’s Revolutionary Guard said it had targeted the Ali Al Salem air base, which hosts U.S. forces in Kuwait, and the U.S. Navy’s 5th Fleet in Bahrain, according to the state-run IRNA news agency.
The U.S. military said there were no reports of harm to U.S. personnel.
Earlier in the month, Iranian drones heavily damaged a passenger terminal at Kuwait’s main airport, killing one person and wounding dozens.
The U.S. military has kept up its blockade on Iranian ports in response to Tehran’s grip on the strait, a crucial corridor for global oil and natural gas shipments.
Energy prices have spiked, posing political problems for U.S. President Donald Trump’s Republican Party ahead of midterm congressional elections in November.
Magdy reported from Cairo and Lidman from Tel Aviv, Israel.
A man walks past anti-U.S. graffiti painted on the wall of the British Embassy in Tehran, Iran, Saturday, June 6, 2026. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)
People walk under a banner showing portraits of the late revolutionary founder Ayatollah Khomeini, left, and the slain Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who was killed in U.S. and Israeli strikes on Feb. 28, in Tehran, Iran, Saturday, June 6, 2026. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)
