Shohei Ohtani, Dodgers Suffer Worst Home Loss Since 1962 in 18-1 Blowout vs. Astros

The Los Angeles Dodgers' recent hot streak ended in spectacular fashion on Friday night with an 18-1 loss to the Houston Astros.

According to ESPN, the 17-run loss was the largest margin of defeat ever for the Dodgers at Dodger Stadium.

Eight of the Astros' nine starters had at least one hit, with home runs from five different players. Jose Altuve had one of his best games of the season, going 3-for-3 with two homers, five RBI and four runs scored.

The Dodgers entered Friday's game having won 15 of their previous 18 games dating back to June 14. They went from being tied for the top spot in the NL West to opening up a nine-game lead over the San Diego Padres during this stretch.

Even though their division lead is still a comfortable eight games, the Dodgers' biggest concern was on display against the Astros. Ben Casparius allowed six earned runs in three innings, and he wasn't even the worst pitcher Los Angeles used in the game.

That distinction belongs to Noah Davis, who allowed 10 earned runs on six hits in 1.1 innings of relief. The right-hander allowed no runs on two hits over four innings in his previous two appearances.

The Dodgers are having a fascinating season because they have lost two games by at least 16 runs, both of them at home. The Colorado Rockies, who are on pace to have the worst single-season winning percentage of the modern era, only have one loss by at least 16 runs (21-0 vs. San Diego on May 10).

Even with those two losses by a combined 33 runs, the Dodgers have the fourth-best run differential in MLB (plus-83).

Adding to the misery of the loss is that it came against the Astros, a team that Dodgers fans still feel a strong sense of resentment toward stemming from the sign-stealing scandal during the 2017 World Series.

On top of all that, most fans at Dodger Stadium probably didn't want to leave early because there was a Fourth of July fireworks show after the game ended.

One benefit of the 162-game MLB schedule is the Dodgers will be right back on the field today with a chance to wash the bad taste out of their mouth. Saturday's game features a marquee pitching matchup with Framber Valdez starting against Shohei Ohtani.