Reds run over by Dodgers

Homer Bailey gave up nine runs in 2 2/3 innings

Cincinnati Reds manager Dusty Baker, left, takes the ball from starting pitcher Homer Bailey during the third inning of a baseball game against the Los Angeles Dodgers in Los Angeles, Tuesday, July 21, 2009.

AP photo by Chris Pizzello Cincinnati Reds manager Dusty Baker, left, takes the ball from starting pitcher Homer Bailey during the third inning of a baseball game against the Los Angeles Dodgers in Los Angeles, Tuesday, July 21, 2009.

ENLARGE PHOTO

By Hal McCoy, Staff Writer Updated 2:46 AM Wednesday, July 22, 2009

LOS ANGELES — Maybe the Cincinnati Reds should just go to a Hollywood sound stage and make a movie, "The Baseball Team That Couldn't Win In L.A."

Based on what happened Tuesday night in Dodger Stadium, the players could have T-shirts printed: "I went to LA to play baseball and all I got was my head handed to me."

Especially pitcher Homer Bailey.

Bailey was a big, fat two-thumbs down during his 2 2/3 explosive innings on the front end of a 12-3 victory by the Los Angeles Dodgers, their 11th straight over the Reds in the Dodger Dungeon.

Bailey gave up nine runs (six earned), eight hits, a home run, two walks, two wild pitches (one that let in a run) and hit Manny Ramirez with a pitch that knocked him out of the game.

This, though, is the telling one. Bailey threw 81 pitches and only twice did LA hitters swing and miss.

"When you have a young pitching staff, you have to live with inconsistencies," said manager Dusty Baker. "But it sure is tough as a manager to watch."

Bailey said there was one silver thread to this one. X-rays on Ramirez's hand were negative, "And the good news is Manny's hand is not broken. If that was the case, there would have been a lot of Los Angeleans mad at me."

There is a huge sign in the upper deck of Dodger Stadium that says, "This is my town." To that, the Reds say, "You can have it." Just think how much money the Cincinnati Reds, Inc., could save by just mailing in their losses to LA and not showing up.

It is questionable whether they showed up Tuesday. It was 2-0 in the first, 4-1 in the second, 9-1 in the third, 12-1 in the fifth — need we go on.

"Just one of those things that you have to wake up the next day and go back to square one," said Bailey. "Probably wasn't anything mechanical. I tried to do too much, only thing I could think of. I was struggling with everything, even the fastball."

From Baker's unobstructed but unwanted view, "Bailey really didn't have command from the beginning. He was either way out of the zone or in the heart of the plate. He lost command of his off-speed breaking pitches and they were sitting on his fastballs.

"When that happens, they're hitting ahead in the count and you have to find more of the plate than you want," Baker added. "They have too good of a lineup to pitch behind — not too many first-pitch strikes — and they were tattooing pitches. What a lineup. When your No. 8 hitter is hitting .327 (Matt Kemp, who homered) — I don't think I've ever seen that."

And for the first time this year, the Reds are five games under .500 (44-49) and remain 5 ½ games out of first place because St. Louis lost again.

The Reds got a home run from Jonny Gomes leading off the second and a bloop single immediately thereafter by Edwin Encarnacion. Then nothing else against LA lefthander Randy Wolf through seven innings. Wolf had that many hits himself — a single and a run-scoring double.

Adam Rosales finally singled in the eighth, the Reds' third hit. Drew Sutton followed with his first major-league hit, driving in Rosales with a single, and Wolf was finished.

The Reds were finished long before then.

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