Trayce Thompson delivers 3 HRs, 8 RBIs for Dodgers in season debut

LOS ANGELES — Trayce Thompson not only took out his frustrations on a left-hander, he helped one as well with a career night to spark the Los Angeles Dodgers to an easy victory.

Thompson hit three home runs, including a grand slam in his first at-bat of the season, and had a career-high eight RBIs as the Dodgers rolled to a 10-1 victory over the Arizona Diamondbacks on Saturday. He's the first player to drive in eight or more runs in a season debut since the RBI became an official statistic in 1920.

The offensive outburst came in support of lefty Clayton Kershaw, who got the best of an old personal rival as Los Angeles beat Arizona for the 16th time in the past 22 meetings. Kershaw earned the victory opposite Arizona's Madison Bumgarner, with the left-handers facing each other for the 12th time.

After struggling to hit left-handed pitching as a platoon player last season, with the right-handed hitting Thompson batting .174 with a .621 OPS against lefties, his first-inning grand slam off Bumgarner felt like an exclamation point.

Was it satisfying since the struggles were a topic of conversation in the spring?

«Not necessarily because I know I can do it,» said Thompson, the brother of Golden State Warriors star Klay Thompson and son of former NBA player Mychal Thompson. «It's just a good way to start the year. It's still early. You still have to wake up tomorrow and go out and help this team win a game but I know I can do it.»

Kershaw (1-0) gave up one run on four hits with no walks and nine strikeouts in an efficient 76 pitches over his first start of 2023. Bumgarner (0-1) gave up five runs on four hits with four walks and two strikeouts in four innings (85 pitches). Each pitcher's team has won six times in the all-time