Cincinnati Reds defeat Los Angeles Dodgers 7-2 for series sweep – MLB Update
The Cincinnati Reds crushed the League rivals Los Angeles Dodgers 7-2 in the third-straight game at Dodger Stadium on Wednesday, June 15 for a series sweep.
After defeating the Dodgers 6-4 and 3-2 in the first two games of the series, the Reds’ manager Dusty Baker employed his best batting and pitching combination to confirm series sweep on his birthday. He was excited when he saw his squad was coming off the
ground with a third-consecutive win in three nights.
Baker said, "It was a real nice birthday present. That was a perfect ending on this west coast trip, which has really been a nemesis to most teams in the east."
The Reds’ starter Travis Wood allowed an RBI single to Marcus Thames in the bottom of the first inning but he remained scoreless until the end of his six innings. Despite winning his fifth game of the season, the right-hand pitcher remained a little wobbly
throughout his spell. He allowed five walks and five hits over 114 pitches and struck-out two batters.
Cincinnati’s batting line-up opened their account in the top of the second inning. Scott Rolen and Fred Lewis scored an RBI each against the Dodgers’ starter Chad Billingsley. Rolen and Lewis each scored an RBI single before Ryan Hanigan drove in a line
drive double to left-field to take the lead to 6-1 in the top of the third inning.
In next inning, third baseman Rolen again came into action with his third RBI single in the game. Scoring these three RBIs took the 36-year-old right-hand slugger to 26 RBIs in this season.
The Reds were leading the game 7-1 until the end of the fourth inning and their starter did not let the opposition come near to this lead. However, the Dodgers’ Juan Uribe made an RBI single in the seventh inning after Wood handed the ball to reliever Jose
Arredondo. Apart from this run, the Reds failed to make any mark in the later innings and received their 39th loss of the season.
Billingsley scattered seven runs on nine hits, allowed four walks and made only three strike-outs over four innings to bear his sixth loss in 15th starts. His relievers’ Josh Lindblom, Matt Guerrier, Javy Guerra and closer Ramon Troncoso did not
go for any run but were helpless to take his club back into a winning position.
After losing to the Reds, the Dodgers will now host the Houston Astros for a three-game series. The Dodgers has lost their previous series with the Astros by 2-1 in May. According to experts, this time the wounded Dodgers will not be an easy team to beat.
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