It's been awhile, but with the way the Dodgers have flopped the last couple of weeks, they'll take any sort of thrills they can get.
Luis Cruz not only doubled home the go-ahead run, but stole home right after to lead the Dodgers over the Reds, 3-1. The optimistic side of me will point out that they've won two of the last three, and are now a half game back of the Giants in the NL West, thanks to another horrendous start by Tim Lincecum.
There's still plenty of talk about All-Star snubs, and two of the leading candidates took the mound in Chris Capuano and Johnny Cueto. Caps has taken his lack of invite in stride, not making an issue of it. Cueto, however, got in a nice lick to Tony LaRussa by claiming that maybe LaRussa's mad that he took took out one his girlfriends.
Somehow I don't see Capuano saying something similar.
But back to the game, and both pitchers threw up blanks through four. The Reds had a couple chances to score, but stranded two in the first and left the bases juiced in the fourth.
It was Cueto who started the Reds' rally in the fifth as his single led off the inning. Capuano got Zack Cozart (who returned a day after getting beaned in the head by Chad Billingsley) and Daniel Stubbs to fly out. But, the tough combination of Joey Votto and Brandon Phillips got a run in. Votto singled to keep the inning alive, and Phillips smacked an RBI double to the wall to make it 1-0.
I'm sure plenty of people (myself included) most likely thought this game was already over. When your favorite team is sporting a lineup that features nobody hitting over .280, nobody with more than six home runs, and is facing a guy with nine wins and an ERA in the 2.30's, it's hard to convince yourself something positive was about to happen.
We can all be grateful that something big did happen. In the sixth, the slumping (and that's an understatement) Elian Herrera pinch-hit for Capuano and singled leading off. Dee Gordon got him over to second on a sacrifice, but A.J. Ellis struck out. Cueto did the Dodgers a favor with a balk, sending Herrera to third. On a full count, Bobby Abreu singled up the middle to tie the game at 1-1.
Dodger Stadium came alive in the seventh, when the boys in blue took the lead for good. James Loney of all people started things with a one-out single. Cruz hasn't been in the majors for long, but he laced an RBI double to left center, as a hustling Loney was just able to beat the tag at home.
With Tony Gwynn up, Don Mattingly wasted no time in calling for the suicide squeeze attempt. Cueto knew something was up as he started his delivery, as he tried to get the ball up for the easy tag. Unfortunately for him, it was way too high and sailed all the way to the backstop, easily allowing Cruz to score and go up 3-1. Technically it was scored as a stolen base, so that's pretty cool for Cruz.
Ronald Belisario got the hold in the eighth, as his filthy stuff caused the Reds to weakly groundout three straight times. Kenley Jansen got his 13th save of the season as Cozart popped up in foul territory to Ellis to end the game.
While it wasn't exactly an outpouring of offense, it was still great to see the Dodgers get to Cueto in the seventh. Coming into this game, they've lost 12 of the last 14, and the offense has largely been to blame. It wasn't much, but getting just enough runs to come across was all the pitching needed on this night.
And speaking of pitching, Capuano had yet another great start. He went six innings for six hits, one run, three walks, and six strikeouts. The Reds were able to put runners on against him, but could only get the one big hit, which was Phillips's double in the fifth. It was a no-decision for Caps, so his record remains at 9-3 to go along with a 2.62 ERA and 1.12 WHIP.
The work of Josh Lindblom, Scott Elbert, Belisario, and Jansen was outstanding. Lindblom started the seventh and got two outs, and Elbert ended up getting the win by getting Votto to fly to left for the final out. Belisario and Jansen are as nasty a combination at the end of a game as you're going to see. Total it all up, and the 'pen pitched three scoreless innings, giving up only a hit and a walk.
If the Dodgers and their patchwork lineup can somehow get a win on the Fourth of July, then that would be an unlikely series victory over a top team in the NL Central. It'll be up to Aaron Harang, as he looks for his sixth win against Mike Leake.
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