LOS ANGELES — Freddie Freeman sat out with right knee soreness and Shohei Ohtani was out of the lineup again, but neither absence mattered. Yoshinobu Yamamoto struck out ten over seven innings, and the offense piled up 14 runs on 14 hits as the Dodgers put away the Reds 14-1 to complete a three game sweep at Dodger Stadium.
De La Cruz’s Blast Is the Lone Blemish
Yamamoto was in control from the start, working seven innings and allowing just three hits to go with his ten strikeouts. He erased a leadoff single in the first with a pickoff of Sal Stewart, and the only run he gave up all day came in the fourth, when Elly De La Cruz turned around a fastball and sent it out to center for a solo homer, the only time all day Cincinnati would cross the plate.
Betts Gets It Going
Los Angeles had already scored single runs in the second and third by then. Teoscar Hernández and Kyle Tucker each singled to open the second, and Alex Freeland’s double play grounder brought home Hernández. In the third, Will Smith doubled and came around to score on a two run homer from Mookie Betts, his 19th of the year, that made it 3-0 before Cincinnati got on the board.
A Six Run Fourth Breaks It Open
Los Angeles blew the game open in the fourth. Kyle Tucker opened the inning with a double, and after Hunter Feduccia walked, Alex Freeland ripped a double of his own to bring home Tucker. Enrique Hernández followed with a two run double that chased Rhett Lowder from the game, and a wild pitch off reliever Luis Mey brought home a third run of the inning. Will Smith walked and Mookie Betts singled before a second wild pitch moved both runners into scoring position, and Teoscar Hernández capped it with a two run single. By the time the inning ended, the Dodgers had sent ten batters to the plate, scored six runs and turned a three run game into a comfortable 9-1 lead.
The Long Balls Keep Coming
Los Angeles wasn’t finished. Max Muncy hit a two run homer, his 27th of the year, in the sixth after a Betts single, stretching the lead to 11-1. Enrique Hernández added a two run shot of his own in the seventh, his third of the season, coming right after Freeland had reached on a walk, and Kyle Tucker capped the scoring with a solo homer in the eighth, his 13th, as the final margin ballooned to 14-1.
Up Next
The Dodgers, now 89-57 on the season, have an off day before heading to Miami for a three game series against the Marlins, beginning Thursday at loanDepot Park. First pitch is scheduled for 7:10 p.m. local time.