As if the Fourth of July holiday wasn't good enough, right before first pitch of the Dodgers' game, news broke that Steve Nash is going to be traded to the Lakers. To quote Daniel Bryan, "Yes! Yes! Yes!"
Then the game started, and thanks to a quick 3-0 lead, the Dodgers cruised to a victory over the Reds, 4-1. After searching for anything positive whatsoever for the better part of two weeks, the Dodgers took two of three in this series. Plus, they own first place once again since the Giants lost to the Nationals.
The "fireworks" got started in the first. Dee Gordon ripped one into right that nearly left the park, but was plenty good for a leadoff double. With the infield in anticipating a bunt, Luis Cruz bounced one into right for an RBI single, and it was 1-0.
Abreu kept things going with a single to put runners on the corners. James Loney's RBI single into right made it 2-0, and the Reds were reeling. Adam Kennedy then hit a grounder to first to get the forceout at second, but the return throw by Zack Cozart was wide, allowing Abreu to score to make it 3-0.
That's all Harang would need, as he was dealing. The only blemish he had was in the fifth. With one out, Devin Mesoraco crushed a solo shot into right to make it 3-1.
One more run was tacked on in the eighth. It started with Gordon again, as he walked and stole second. Cruz then took a walk, and Gordon swiped third in the process. Unfortunately, he also dislocated his right thumb on the play and had to come out. The returning Mark Ellis pinch-ran for him and was caught in a rundown at home for the first out. After Loney was intentionally walked to load the bases, Kennedy's sac-fly RBI to center made it 4-1.
No surprise here, but Ronald Belisario and Kenley Jansen teamed up to close out the final two innings. Belisario was just plain nasty as he struck out the side. Jansen got a couple K's himself for this 14th save. They were as close to untouchable as you could possibly be.
While the start of the game was big, there's no question that the power pitching was the true story of the night. It all started with Harang, who shut down his former team for seven innings, three hits, one run, one walk, and five strikeouts. The win gets him to 6-5 with a 3.51 ERA. For a guy who was signed to anchor the end of the rotation, he's been huge for the Dodgers.
The offense only had six hits, but they did a bunch of little things that led them to a win, much like the previous night against Johnny Cueto. The two stolen bases by Gordon in the eighth led to a run. Kennedy's sac-fly brought that run in. In the first, Gordon getting on base to start was big, as was the three straight singles that came right after.
Andre Ethier has joined Matt Kemp on the DL, but both men appear to be back soon after the All-Star break, if not right after. So, the Dodgers once again have to find ways to win with quirky lineups. That might be even tougher now with Gordon's thumb injury. It's hard to guess how long he'll be out, but it's also hard to see him avoiding the DL for this. At least it's not broken. We'll soon find out some sort of length.
The final series before the break is a four-game tilt in Arizona. The Dodgers have struggled recently, but the Diamondbacks haven't gotten going at all this season. Remember how all the "experts" said the Diamondbacks would run away with the NL West? Well, that hasn't quite happened, as they're currently six games back and three games under .500. Nathan Eovaldi will once again look for win #1 against the DBacks' All-Star, Wade Miley.
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