Buehler sharp, but Dodgers get shut out
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CINCINNATI -- Walker Buehler, a native of Lexington, Ky., was pitching about an hour north of his hometown on Saturday with around 30 family members and friends in attendance. Unfortunately for the Dodgers' right-hander, Lady Luck was not in the ballpark.
Buehler allowed only one earned run but suffered his first loss of the season as the Dodgers dropped a 4-0 decision to the Reds on Saturday at Great American Ball Park.
The loss snapped the Dodgers’ four-game winning streak.
Buehler did not walk a batter and struck out seven, but a throwing error by Corey Seager and a couple swings by Jesse Winker and former Dodger Yasiel Puig sealed his fate.
The three unearned runs were the most allowed in Buehler’s career.
“I felt OK with it,” Buehler said of his first loss of the season, which came against the team he rooted for growing up. “One inning got away from me. Didn’t walk anybody. Not thrilled with the result, but I feel good with where I’m at.”
Winker’s homer leading off the second put Cincinnati ahead 1-0. It was Winker’s 10th homer, and the fifth big fly allowed by Buehler this season. He had no regrets about the location of the pitch.
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“The Winker homer, I’ll take my chances on that pitch with anyone,” Buehler said. “It was in the top of the zone, which is kind of my strength.”
There was more misfortune for the Dodgers when Seager’s bid for a three-run home run to the opposite field in the third inning landed two feet foul. The Dodgers stranded two runners as Tyler Mahle escaped a 28-pitch inning.
The Dodgers managed only four hits off Mahle, who earned his first victory of the season.
“His fastball was running in on us, and [he was] beating us with the fastball in,” said Dodgers manager Dave Roberts. “We took some good swings against him. He just found a way. Not a bunch of punch.”
Seager’s throwing error on a potential double-play ball contributed to a three-run inning for the Reds in the third. And Puig’s two-out, two-run single that dropped in front of center fielder Alex Verdugo made the score 4-0.
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Roberts didn’t think Verdugo had a chance to catch the ball, and Buehler agreed.
“Puig didn’t hit it hard enough to get it to our guy,” Buehler said. “It’s frustrating when that happens.”
It was only the fourth time the Dodgers have been shut out this season, while it was the Reds’ sixth shutout win. The Dodgers haven't been blanked by the Reds since a 5-0 loss on June 11, 2014, at Great American Ball Park.
The Dodgers dropped to 4-8 this season when they don’t hit a home run. They were without Justin Turner, who didn’t start due to a shin contusion, though he did make an appearance as a pinch-hitter in the ninth and grounded out to end the game.
“Our plan is still our plan, to put the barrel to it and swing at strikes,” Roberts said. “The homer is in our mix offensively. Situationally we’ve been good this year. For me, we just need to wash this one off.”