The Dodgers didn’t have to worry about being in an another offensive onslaught in their second matchup of the spring against the Cincinnati Reds, as they struck early and kept their foot on the gas pedal in a 9-5 victory on Thursday.
The Dodgers pounced early against left-hander Nick Lodolo, as Andy Pages rocketed a one-out single in the bottom of the first inning, later scoring on an RBI double from Teoscar Hernández. Freddie Freeman’s ninth hit of the spring drove home Hernández for his ninth RBI of the spring with an opposite field single, and Santiago Espinal continued to torment his old team by smacking a two-run double down the left field line to cap off a four-run first inning. In two games against the Reds this spring, Espinal now has two home runs and eight RBI while boasting a .600 batting average (3-5).
Cole Irvin was given the start for the Dodgers, and although he received an abundance of run support, he struggled mightily with his command, allowing four free passes over two innings of work while tossing 57 pitches (29 for strikes). Irvin walked Rece Hinds with the bases loaded to put Cincinnati on the board, but managed to get two consecutive outs to keep the potential go-ahead run off base.
The Reds tacked on a pair of runs against Myles Caba in the top of the third inning, but Max Muncy got those two runs right back in the bottom half of the inning with a home run to right-center field that left the bat at 106.9 miles per hour.
Teoscar Hernández added to the lead in the bottom of the fifth with his first home run of the spring to increase the Dodger lead to five.
Kyle Hurt struck out the side in a scoreless inning of work, before right-hander Paul Gervase retired all five hitters he faced. Alex Vesia came in for one batter in relief of Gervase, as he struck out Hinds to end the top of the sixth inning.
Although the Dodgers defense failed Tanner Scott in the top of the seventh inning which allowed a pair of runs to score, both runs were unearned and Scott still carries a 0.00 ERA this spring. Kyle Nevin added an insurance run with a home run to left field in the bottom half to bring the Dodger lead back to four.
Both Antoine Kelly and Antonio Knowles combined to record a scoreless eighth inning, leaving a pair of Reds on base. Knowles came back out for the ninth inning, closing out Thursday’s contest with a perfect 10-pitch frame.
UP NEXT
The Dodgers are back on the road to take on the Seattle Mariners at Peoria Stadium on Friday (6:10 p.m. PT, SportsNet LA). Landon Knack makes his fourth start this spring for the Dodgers, while left-hander Kade Anderson gets the nod for Seattle.
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