Just one day removed from meeting for the first time this spring at Camelback Ranch, the Los Angeles Dodgers and Cincinnati Reds go at it again on Friday — this time, at Goodyear Ballpark.
Thursday’s contest between the two teams resulted in a 3-3 tie, but the much bigger storyline revolved around Yasiel Puig facing his former club for the first time as a visiting player.
The 28-year-old received a round of applause from Dodgers fans and picked up one hit in three at-bats, singling off left-hander Hyun-Jin Ryu in the first inning. Puig was quite candid when speaking of his time with the club and is motivated to prove they made a mistake by trading him.
Puig again is in the Reds lineup, batting fifth and playing right field. He’s joined by former Dodgers Matt Kemp and Kyle Farmer, who are hitting third and eight, respectively.
Julio Urias gets the nod and looks to keep the ball rolling with another excellent start. In three outings this spring, he is 1-0 with a superb 1.50 ERA, 0.33 WHIP and six strikeouts in six innings pitched.
The 22-year-old is remaining on a starting pitcher’s regimen and reportedly will be limited to less than 100 innings this season. The Dodgers are hoping to preserve the bulk of those for later in the year.
The Reds counter with right-hander Tanner Roark, who struggled in his last outing against the Arizona Diamondbacks. In four innings of work, he allowed three runs on four hits but did manage to notch six strikeouts while only issuing one walk.
For the spring, Roark is 1-1 with a 3.86 ERA, 0.96 WHIP and 11 strikeouts over 9.1 innings (four Cactus League appearances).
Dodgers lineup:
CF: Alex Verdugo
3B: Justin Turner
SS: Chris Taylor
2B: Brad Miller
C: Russell Martin
RF: Ezequiel Carrera
LF: Edwin Rios
1B: Cody Asche
P: Julio Urias
Reds lineup:
CF: Nick Senzel
1B: Joey Votto
LF: Matt Kemp
3B: Eugenio Suarez
RF: Yasiel Puig
SS: Jose Peraza
C: Curt Casali
2B: Kyle Farmer
P: Tanner Roark
