Cincinnati Reds at Los Angeles Dodgers

Shohei Ohtani gets first victory with Dodgers, striking out season-high 9 against Reds

The Dodgers won their fourth straight and extended their NL West lead to two games over San Diego, which lost 4-3 at Seattle.

Ohtani (1-1) bounced back against the Reds in his 11th start of the season and first in which he went the minimum five innings to qualify for a win. The victory was his first since Aug. 9, 2023, with the Angels against San Francisco.

The two-way star allowed one run and two hits while walking two on a season-high 87 pitches, 53 for strikes, while retiring his final eight batters on his bobblehead night. At the plate, he was 1 for 5 with a run.

The Reds led 1-0 on Noelvi Marte's 410-foot homer on the first pitch by Ohtani in the third. It was the third homer Ohtani has allowed this season.

The Dodgers scored four runs to take a 4-1 lead in the fourth. Kiké Hernández, starting in place of injured Freddie Freeman, had a two-run single up the middle. It was the third straight single allowed by Nick Lodolo (8-7), who retired the first nine batters he faced.

Lodolo intentionally walked Miguel Rojas, and Dalton Rushing followed with a two-run single. Michael Conforto added a solo homer in the eighth.

Key moment Ohtani pitched his way out of trouble in the second. With one out, he walked Spencer Steer and Jose Trevino back-to-back. They moved up on two wild pitches — Ohtani's seventh and eighth of the season — before Ke'Bryan Hayes and Matt McLain went down swinging to end the inning.

Key stats Los Angeles pitchers struck out a franchise-record 19 batters for a nine-inning game.

Up next After off days for both teams, Reds RHP Zack Littell (9-8, 3.62 ERA) starts Friday at home against St. Louis. Dodgers LHP Blake Snell (3-2, 1.97) starts Friday against visiting Arizona.

How can I watch Cincinnati Reds vs. Los Angeles Dodgers?

• TV Channel: Reds at Dodgers 2022 MLB Baseball, is broadcasted on Sportsnet LA.
• Online streaming: Sign up for Fubo.