Dose of Venom: Dodgers take advantage of wild Cahill, overturned calls in win over D-backs

PHOENIX — The Los Angeles Dodgers put together a six-run fourth inning — forcing Trevor Cahill’s early exit and propelling them to a convincing 9-5 win over the Arizona Diamondbacks Tuesday night.

The key difference in the National League West contest was the Dodgers’ efficiency when hitting with runners on base. Los Angeles took advantage of three walks issued by Cahill, as all three base runners eventually scored. As a team, the Dodgers hit 8-for-13 with runners in scoring position while the D-backs finished 4-for-14.

Cahill (3-9, 4.98 ERA) was lifted for Randall Delgado by manager Kirk Gibson after 3.1 innings pitched in which he allowed eight runs and eight hits. His outing snapped a streak of five consecutive quality starts which lowered his ERA by 1.18 over that span.

Dodgers outfielder Matt Kemp provided early run support for Roberto Hernandez in the opening frame with his 16th home run of the season — a two-run line drive into the left field bleachers.

The D-backs tied the score at two in the bottom of the second courtesy of an Ender Inciarte two-run single.

Inciarte was a the lone bright spot for the home side Tuesday, finishing 2-for-5 with three RBI and his 11th stolen base of the season.

With the exception of Inciarte, Hernandez (8-9, 3.81 ERA) kept the D-backs in check for six innings and protected the comfortable lead his offense provided for him in the top of the fourth.

Five consecutive RBI singles from Carl Crawford, Justin Turner, A.J. Ellis, Hernandez, and Dee Gordon were ample damage that turned a tie game into a 7-2 commanding lead. The inning began with consecutive walks issued by Cahill to Adrian Gonzalez and Kemp.

THE GOOD:

After another big game, it’s fair to suggest that Enciarte has perhaps become upgrade in the outfield since the team traded Gerardo Parra to Milwaukee at the non-waiver trade deadline.

The D-backs recorded two more outfield assists from Inciarte and David Peralta, bringing their total to 38 which leads all of baseball.

Mark Trumbo finished the game with two hits and notched an RBI in the ninth inning. He has elevated his batting average to .237.

HE SAID IT:

“I got wild in the zone, then couldn’t put anyone away after getting ahead of some guys. They got a long lineup and there’s no easy outs in it. The whole thing kind of snowballed on me.” — Trevor Cahill after his outing

NOTED:

• There were three replays in Tuesday’s contest — two of which were overturned. In the midst of the Dodgers’ fourth inning outburst, Crawford was initially ruled out at home plate following Miguel Montero’s tag on his shoulder before touching the plate on the slide. After the umpires initiated their own review, it was determined Montero did not have the ball in his glove which tagged Crawford — thus overturning the call and giving the Dodgers their fifth run.

The other overturned call in the fourth was an incorrect out call at first base. Hernandez laid down a safety squeeze which turned into an RBI bunt single. Hernandez beat the throw to first base and was later awarded the base hit.

UP NEXT:

The D-backs complete their brief two-game series against the Dodgers Wednesday when Wade Miley (7-9, 4.29 ERA) tries to out-duel Clayton Kershaw (15-3, 1.82 ERA), the front-runner for this year’s NL Cy Young award. Miley faces the Dodgers for the fifth time this season and has yet to record a win. The southpaw’s split versus Los Angeles is 0-3, with a 5.32 ERA in 2014.

Kershaw had arguably his worst career start the last time he visited Chase Field, lasting only 1.2 innings and allowing seven earned runs. First pitch is scheduled for 6:40 p.m. Arizona time, with the Diamondbacks pre-game show beginning at 6:10 p.m.. Listen to all the action on Arizona Sports 98.7 FM.