Reds Sweep Dodgers

Jay Bruce solved Clayton Kershaw with a pair of long home runs in his first two at-bats.

Ryan Hanigan doubled down the leftfield line to allow Zack Cozart to slide home with the winning run in the bottom of the ninth for the Reds' 3-2 win over the Dodgers.  Cozart extended his hitting streak to 13 with a single in the seventh.  His second single one out into the ninth set the stage for the walk-off win.

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"Belisario is tough," said Hanigan, who has struggled with injuries all season . "He tries to get guys out with that sinker. I was looking for it. It's one of those games. Kind of went the way we expected. A lot of quality pitching, low scoring. But, it was an awesome way to win".

The Reds have had no shortage of heroes while winning six of the seven games in this homestand against teams that lead their respective divisions

"That's what a team does. A team doesn't depend on just one person. Everybody wants to be that guy and be in that situation. What's what a team is all about," Baker said.

Homer Bailey retired the first 11 batters before Adrian Gonzalez singled to center.  Hanley Ramirez drove Gonzalez home with a double to leftcenter.  Ramirez tied the game at 2-2 with a home run leading off the seventh inning.  The Dodgers scored a total of seven runs through the seventh inning of Sunday's game.  Ramirez drove in five of them.  Yasiel Puig drove in the other two.

"Homer was masterful, especially in the beginning," Dusty Baker said. "He got through that tough inning and gave us a chance to win."

Aroldis Chapman picked up his fourth win in nine decisions.  He struck out two Dodgers in a scoreless ninth.  Chapman went eight games without pitching.  Since then he has pitched in five of the last six games.

The win put the Reds' in a virtual tie for second place with the Pittsburgh Pirates in the NL Central, a game and a half behind the St. Louis Cardinals.  The Pirates are 81-61 with a winning percentage of .570.  The Reds are 82-62 with a .569 winning percentage.

Bruce had three singles in 11 at-bats against the Dodgers left-hander in his career coming into the game.

Kershaw began the game leading the Major Leagues with a 1.89 ERA.

Bruce hit his first home run in the second inning to get the scoring started for both teams.  His second gave the Reds a second one run lead in the fourth.

"He's a pitcher, if he gives you a pitch to hit, if you don't take advantage of it, you're probably out," Bruce said of Kershaw. "He threw me a couple pitches I could handle tonight."

Notes:

Bruce is one home run shy of becoming the sixth player in Reds' history to hit 30 or more home runs in three straight seasons, joining Ted Kluszewski, Frank Robinson, Lee May, George Foster and Adam Dunn...The Reds are a season-high 20 games above .500... The Reds are four games behind Atlanta for the best record in the National League...The Reds are two games behind the Dodgers for the second best record in the National League...The Reds are 1-1/2 games behind the Cardinals for the Central Division lead...