 got his first win in his ninth start, allowing four singles and a pair of walks in five innings. Mahle showed significant improvement over his April 16 start at Dodger Stadium, where he gave up a career-high 11 hits in a 6-1 loss.''You can't say enough about Mahle,'' manager David Bell said. ''The way he prepared against that great lineup was really impressive.'' The Dodgers got a base runner in each of the first five innings Saturday but Mahle escaped a pair of scoring threats.Three relievers completed the Reds' sixth shutout victory, tied with the Cubs for most in the NL. The Dodgers were blanked for the fourth time.It was the Reds' first shutout win over the Dodgers since a 5-0 victory at Great American on June 11, 2014.''We didn't have a lot of good swings against him,'' manager Dave Roberts said.Winker's solo homer in the second inning off Walker Buehler (4-1) ended the Dodgers' streak of 23 scoreless innings. They were coming off back-to-back shutout wins. Puig singled home a pair of runs in the third after a throwing error by shortstop Corey Seager set up a rally.Puig's sinking liner to center landed before Alex Verdugo could get to it. The Reds wound up with three unearned runs out of the inning.''Puig didn't hit it hard enough to get it to our guy,'' Buehler said. ''It's frustrating when that happens.'' It was Puig's first hit since a bases-loaded single in the 10th inning gave the Reds a 6-5 win over the Cubs on Wednesday.''I was only happy to get a hit,'' Puig said. ''The night before, I did nothing. I finally got a hit, and that made me feel better.'' Cody Bellinger had a pair of singles, leaving his batting average at .409. He fouled a ball off his right foot in his final at-bat but stayed in the game and singled.REDS MOVEOutfielder Phillip Ervin was recalled from Triple-A Louisville and left-handed reliever Cody Reed was optioned. Reed was called up Friday and pitched two innings in LA's 6-0 win.HOMECOMINGBuehler grew up in Lexington, Kentucky, about an hour south, and attended games at Great American Ball Park. Between 30-40 relatives and friends were in the stands Saturday for his first career appearance at Great American, which was a notable personal moment as well.''I've been to a few games here and grew up a Reds fan,'' he said. ''It's probably a little more special, a little different than other places.'' FINALLY A HITTucker Barnhart singled in his first at-bat, ending a 0-for-13 slump. Barnhart has two hits in his last 29 at-bats and three in his last 41.VOTTO'S STREAKJoey Votto went 0 for 3 with a walk, ending his season-best hitting streak at six games. Votto is 10 for 62 (.161) in May with three RBIs.TRAINER'S ROOMDodgers: Justin Turner was better a day after he fouled a ball off his left shin and left the game. He was out of the lineup, but pinch hit in the ninth and made the final out by hitting into a force play. Roberts planned to wait and see how Turner felt Sunday morning before deciding whether to put him back into the lineup.Reds: Infielder Alex Blandino is close to starting a rehabilitation assignment in the minors. He tore ligaments while turning a double play last July and had reconstructive surgery.UP NEXTDodgers: Hyun-Jin Ryu (5-1) allowed only one hit in eight innings of a 6-0 win over Washington last Sunday. He leads the majors in strikeout-to-walk ratio.Reds: Tanner Roark (3-2) has allowed only two homers in 46 1/3 innings. He's 0-2 with a 3.63 ERA in four career starts against the Dodgers.---More MLB: https://apnews.com/MLB and https://twitter.com/-Sports)
Reds' Mahle again faces LA's Buehler in quest for first win Perhaps another game against the Los Angeles Dodgers is exactly what Southern California native Tyler Mahle needs to break into the win column this season.Mahle, who hails from just outside of Los Angeles in Westminster, has yet to win a game in eight starts and will get his second crack at the Dodgers on Saturday at home in the second game of a three-game series.On April 16, Mahle pitched in front of family and friends at Dodger Stadium, giving up four runs on 11 hits over six innings, while getting touched for a home run by Joc Pederson. It started him on a stretch where he would give up at least four runs in three consecutive outings.He reversed the trend in impressive fashion to start the month of May, giving up just one run in consecutive starts against the New York Mets and Oakland A's. But the Reds offense was shut out in each game, a pair of hard-luck losses.At San Francisco on Sunday, it was another four runs over 6 1/3 innings as the Reds were defeated. He might be 0-5, but he has had his moments while posting a 3.97 ERA, even though Cincinnati is just 1-7 in his starts and has lost six consecutive.Against the Giants, he finished with eight strikeouts and cruised into the seventh inning, but a walk to Brandon Crawford and a game-tying pinch-hit home run from Brandon Belt was his undoing."(Manager) David (Bell) asked me if I was feeling good; I didn't give it a second thought," Mahle told reporters after Sunday's game. "He gave me a chance to go out there and throw another inning. I blew it. But I'm happy he has that faith in me." The Dodgers will counter with right-hander Walker Buehler (4-0, 4.15), who seems to be getting better and better each time out after fastball command was an issue in the early part of the season.Buehler has struck out 15 total batters in his two May starts, hitting 99 mph on the radar gun in a May 6 victory over the Atlanta Braves. In his most recent outing on May 11, he pitched seven scoreless innings against the Washington Nationals."Here and there you find something, a different feel, a different mechanic, or something you're not quite doing like last year," Buehler said after his last start. "And I think the past few outings, I think I've gotten a little bit closer, and we'll keep trying." Buehler is 1-1 in two career starts against the Reds, posting a 1.46 ERA. The lone victory came on April 17 when he held the Reds to no earned runs over 6 1/3 innings of a 3-2 Dodgers' win at Los Angeles.Mahle does know what it feels like to defeat Buehler. The two squared off May 10 of last year, with the Reds earning a 4-1 victory. Mahle did not give up an earned run in that game, while Buehler gave up two.The status of the Dodgers' Justin Turner is day-to-day heading into Saturday's game. The third baseman came out of Friday's contest with a left shin contusion after he fouled a ball off his leg in the third inning.--Field Level Media
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