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Dodgers 8 Reds 4
That's six straight losses and 10 of 13.... and eight straight losses to the Dodgers. The Reds stand 23-45, now on pace to go 55-107.
Seesaw, then tilt: The Reds score three runs to jump to a 3-0 lead in the bottom of the 2nd inning. The Dodgers took a 4-3 lead with a three run 5th inning.
The Reds tied things up in the bottom of the 5th inning. The Dodgers took a 5-4 lead in the 7th inning and tacked on three more in the 8th inning.
Mr Freeman: 4-4 in the 7th inning, Freddie Freeman crushed a 417 foot go-ahead solo homer off lefty Ross Detwiler. Bell sent him back out for the 7th to face Freeman, the lefty leadoff batter of the inning. It was this past Friday night that Detwiler allowed a 7th inning, game deciding homer to Keston Hiura of the Brewers. Freeman has driven in seven runs in the first two games of the series. Detwiler had thrown a 1-2-3 6th inning on 12 pitches.
Not himself: Luis Castillo: 5 IN, 5 H, 4 R, 3 BB, 6 K, 103 pitches/61 strikes. He seemed to struggle with his changeup and threw a first pitch strike to just 11 of 25 batters faced. After being given a 3-0 lead he allowed the first three Dodgers to reach in the 3rd inning (Turner BB-Freeman HBP-Smith RBI 1B), but limited the damage to just one run. But things unraveled in a three run 4th inning, allowing three hits, a four pitch walk and hitting Chris Taylor with the bases loaded to give the Dodgers a 4-3 lead.
Bullpen = Bull s^&%: It really is amazing to watch the organization run these relievers out on a nightly basis. 4 innings. 4 runs.
Detwiler 1.0, HR. Kuhnel 1.0, 3 R, 2 BB. The pen began the night with a ML worst 5.15 ERA......far ahead of the next worst of Cubs 4.78.
More from Almora! Almora Jr. homered for the second consecutive night (5) to tie the game in the 5th inning. That's three homers in his last five games.
He did not homer in 88 ML plate appearances over 2020 and 2021. He added a sweet charging/sliding catch on a sacrifice fly in the 8th.
Welcome! Donovan Solano made his season debut, starting at 3B, and roped and RBI double to score Kyle Farmer (2B) for the first run of the game in the 2nd inning.
Doing damage: Dodgers starter Tyler Anderson entered the game (8-0 2.42) having not allowed more than two runs in 10 of 12 starts. He allowed three runs in the 2nd inning. A Trea Turner throwing error scored one run and an Anderson wild pitch scored another. The final two runs came after Almora Jr. hustled to beat out a double-play to extend the inning.
Snapped out of it: Farmer ended an 0 for 9 skid with a three hit night.
Unhittable: Dodgers 3B Max Muncy is 0 for 13 in career vs Castillo....with 10 K.
Cut down: 4-4 in the 5th inning, Jonathan India was thrown out at the plate by Taylor in LF on a 'shallow' Tommy Pham fly ball. As Marty would say, "he was out from here to there."
Target practice: After Castillo plucked two Dodgers (Freeman 3rd inning, Taylor 5th inning), Anderson hit India in the 5th inning and Alex Vesia buzzed the tower over Votto's head in the 6th inning.