Reds at Dodgers
Missing two of their top offensive players due to injuries, the Los Angeles Dodgers went out and registered 13 hits en route to a victory. The Dodgers hope to have Cody Bellinger and Justin Turner back in the lineup Wednesday as they attempt to complete a sweep when they host the Cincinnati Reds for the finale of their three-game series.
Bellinger missed Tuesday's 6-1 victory with a bruised right knee and Turner sat out because of tightness in his left hamstring, but Los Angeles expects them to play Wednesday. Corey Seager and Alex Verdugo recorded three hits apiece, with the latter also driving in three runs, and Joc Pederson homered in his third straight game to give him five blasts in his last seven contests as the Dodgers notched their third consecutive win following a six-game losing streak. The Reds finished with only four hits (three doubles) as they lost their third in a row after winning four straight. Joey Votto batted in the leadoff position for the second time in his career (2008 - also versus Los Angeles) and plated Cincinnati's lone run with a double for his 900th RBI.
TV: 3:10 p.m. ET, FS Ohio (Cincinnati), SportsNet LA (Los Angeles)
PITCHING MATCHUP: Reds RH Sonny Gray (0-2, 2.03 ERA) vs. Dodgers RH Walker Buehler (1-0, 8.25)
Gray remains in search of his first win in his debut season with Cincinnati but has worked more than four innings in just one of his three starts. The 29-year-old Tennessean was on his way toward a victory against Miami on Thursday as he allowed two hits and registered six strikeouts in four frames but was forced to exit due to a left calf contusion. Gray was sensational in his lone career turn against the Dodgers, recording nine strikeouts while issuing one walk in a three-hit shutout on July 28, 2015 at Los Angeles while with Oakland.
Buehler also has lasted more than four innings once in three outings, allowing one run and three hits over five frames in a victory at Colorado on April 6. The 24-year-old native of Kentucky surrendered five runs in each of his other two turns but escaped with no-decisions, including his four-frame effort at St. Louis on Thursday. Buehler was tagged with the loss in his only career start against Cincinnati on May 10 despite giving up two runs and five hits while striking out eight batters over six innings.
WALK-OFFS
1. The Dodgers have homered in 31 consecutive home games dating to Aug. 21 and are one shy of matching the major-league record set in 1999 by Colorado.
2. Just one of Cincinnati's 3-through-7 hitters in Tuesday's lineup has a batting average above .200 (Derek Dietrich, .212).
3. Verdugo has gone 7-for-15 with a homer and six RBIs over the first five contests of Los Angeles' six-game homestand.