If the Los Angeles Angels manage to turn their 2025 season around, they may look back at an improbable three-game sweep of the Dodgers as the pivotal moment. Facing the defending World Series champions, the last-place Angels stunned the baseball world with a 6-4 victory on Sunday, completing their first sweep of the Freeway Series since 2010 — and their first three-game sweep of the Dodgers in 15 years, per MLB’s social media.
“It’s tremendous,” said veteran catcher Travis d’Arnaud, who delivered a tiebreaking solo homer in the eighth inning and added an RBI single earlier in the game. “Every game here has felt like a playoff atmosphere. Everybody was passing the baton, having good at-bats up and down the lineup… It’s very good for our confidence moving forward, knowing we can beat anybody.”
The Angels (20-25) came into the series at 17-25, mired in the AL West cellar, and just 4-6 in their last 10 games. But three straight wins against the 29-18 Dodgers — who hadn’t been swept in a series since last July in Philadelphia — offered a much-needed injection of hope.
Los Angeles Angels Sweep Dodgers in Stunning Series That Could Spark Season Turnaround
The Angels dominated Dodgers pitching in the first two games, batting .307 (23-for-75) with 17 runs, four homers, and eight doubles. On Sunday, they came out hot again, with Zach Neto, Taylor Ward, and d’Arnaud all going deep. Ward’s two-run blast and Neto’s solo shot off Dodgers starter Tony Gonsolin gave the Angels a 3-0 lead in the first inning.
Left-hander Yusei Kikuchi, who has been solid despite poor run support, pitched 5⅔ innings of one-run ball, allowing just three hits while striking out seven. He exited with a 4-1 lead after suffering right ankle irritation in a collision at first base with Tommy Edman. Kikuchi (0-4) still doesn’t have a win despite a respectable 3.50 ERA over 10 starts.
That lead evaporated when Shaun Anderson gave up a three-run homer to Will Smith in the seventh, tying the game at 4-4. But Anderson, pressed into a high-leverage role with usual setup man Ryan Zeferjahn and closer Kenley Jansen unavailable, rebounded to retire the side in order in both the eighth and ninth innings. He punctuated the win by striking out Shohei Ohtani — the 2024 NL MVP — for the final out.
“He really saved us,” Angels manager Ron Washington said of Anderson, who earned both a blown save and the win. “When he came in [after the seventh inning], I told him this game was his. And he went out there and did a good job and ended up getting Ohtani for the last out of the game.”
Anderson, who has played for 10 different organizations since 2016, called the sweep a reflection of the team’s quiet determination. “To come in here and sweep them, it kind of shows what the Angels have, you know? It’s kind of hard to see with our record, but these guys put in the work every day… It just shows what we can do here.”
The sweep also included a 6-2 win on Friday and an 11-9 slugfest on Saturday that spoiled Clayton Kershaw’s season debut. The future Hall of Famer lasted only four innings, surrendering five runs on five hits.
The Angels and Dodgers stand on opposite ends of the historical spectrum. The Angels, founded in 1961, have one championship (2002) and haven’t made the playoffs since 2014. The Dodgers, established in 1883, have won eight titles, including in 2020 and 2024. Adding to the narrative, Shohei Ohtani — the Angels’ former superstar — signed a 10-year, $700 million deal with the Dodgers this offseason and won a title in his first season away from Anaheim.
Despite their sweep, the Angels remain in last place in the AL West, though they are now just one game behind the fourth-place Oakland Athletics, whom they face next. If the weekend’s effort against their crosstown rivals is any indication, they may finally have some momentum to build on.