In need of a win to snap their losing streak and generate some momentum heading into a road trip, the Los Angeles Dodgers were led by Clayton Kershaw and Justin Turner before the lineup erupted late in an 8-0 win over the Cincinnati Reds.
Although the inning could have been much bigger considering it began with two on and nobody out, the Dodgers took a 1-0 lead in the second when Luke Raley grounded into a double play. Turner then added to that with a towering solo home run in the third inning that travelled 411 feet to left-center field.
That was all the Dodgers ended up getting against Sonny Gray, who finished with 11 strikeouts over 5.2 innings. “Getting that run early is awesome, and J.T. hitting that home run was obviously huge to get some insurance,” Kershaw said.
“Sonny was pretty nasty today. It was tough to see the ball. He was nasty.”
The Reds bullpen then imploded in the eighth inning, though Nick Castellanos’ defense also didn’t help matters. Chris Taylor’s fly ball to deep right field carried over Castellanos’ head and laded for a two-out RBI triple.
AJ Pollock then scored Taylor on a base hit to left, and the floodgates opened when Luke Raley was intentionally walked. Sal Romano walked Austin Barnes to load the bases, and Matt Beaty and Mookie Betts each tacked on a two-run single to blow the game open.
Kershaw answered bell for Dodgers
Mired in their first three-game losing streak since 2019 and having dropped seven of the last nine, the Dodgers needed every bit of Kershaw’s brilliance. He worked around early traffic and effectively spun a heavy dose of curveballs to record eight strikeouts over seven innings.
“He’s been a great pitcher for a long time. He’s a stopper, he’s been the ace,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said. “He knew how much we needed this game. For him to go deep in the game, throw a shutout, was big for our club.”
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