CHRISTOPHER STOCK
Associated Press
MIAMI (AP) — After struggling throughout his career against the Miami Marlins, Matt Latos final beat his hometown team.
Latos (3-3), who hails from nearby Coconut Creek, beat the Marlins for the first time in eight career starts while allowing one run in seven innings to help the Cincinnati Reds to a 5-2 win Friday night.
“I battled,” Latos said. “I had to bear down when I needed to. I made some good pitches and the offense picked me up today. A good game all around.”
He gave up five hits and four walks while striking out five.
“He pitched well, mixed his speeds in, and we had a couple shots there to get to him early, but just couldn’t get that big hit,” Marlins manager Mike Redmond said.
Aroldis Chapman got the last three outs for his 25th save in 27 chances.
“It’s a great team victory,” Reds manager Bryan Price said. “We dodged a few bullets.”
Marlins All-Star slugger Giancarlo Stanton homered in his third consecutive game to give him a National League-best 26. Jarred Cosart (0-1) gave up four runs and four hits in 5 1-3 innings in his Marlins debut one day after being acquired from Houston.
“It’s a whirlwind, but (catcher Jarrod Saltalamacchia) made it pretty easy on me,” Cosart said. “We pretty much had a game plan and for the most part I executed it.”
Miami has lost three straight after winning six in a row.
The Reds’ Todd Frazier and the Marlins’ Jordany Valdespin traded RBI singles before the Reds scored three runs in the sixth inning to take a 4-1 lead.
Cosart retired the first nine batters he faced and recorded his first hit in the majors before running into trouble in the pivotal sixth. Cosart was pulled after he loaded the bases in favor of Chris Hatcher, who immediately allowed a two-run double to Ludwick.
Stanton’s solo homer in the eighth pulled Miami to 4-2.
TRAINER’S ROOM
Reds: Brandon Phillips (left thumb) joined the team on the road trip and fielded ground balls on Thursday, but there is no timetable of when he will be able to swing the bat.
“I don’t think he’s close, but I don’t know what close is whether it’s five days or two weeks, I’m not sure,” said Price, who added that the target date for Phillips’ return remains late August.
Marlins: All-Star pitcher Henderson Alvarez was placed on the 15-day disabled list before the game with shoulder inflammation. Alvarez, who was scheduled to start Sunday’s game, is 8-5 with a 2.48 ERA.
“I don’t know if it’s in the same spot or the same type of pain he had last year, but we’re going to get him checked out and make sure we get him healthy,” Redmond said. “Hopefully we caught it early enough where it’s not a huge deal; just 15 days on the DL hopefully, that’s the hope.”
ON DECK
The Reds will start right-hander Homer Bailey (8-5, 4.03) on Saturday against Marlins righty Nathan Eovaldi (5-6, 4.37). Bailey has pitched at least eight innings in three of his last five starts and is 1-1 with a 2.00 ERA during that span. Eovaldi is 0-2 with a 9.92 ERA in his last three starts.
LUDWICK COMING UP BIG
Ludwick delivered the go-ahead two-run double in the eighth inning in Thursday’s 3-1 win and came through again for the Reds on Friday. “I felt the baseball Gods were with me because the at-bat before I hit the line drive to the third baseman,” Ludwick said. It’s the first time Ludwick has had consecutive multi-RBI games since Aug. 10-11, 2012.
STANTON’S POWER SURGE
Stanton has homered in three consecutive games for the first time since a three-game streak from Sept. 7-9, 2012. He hit his 143rd career home run tying Mike Lowell for third on the Club’s all-time list. “He’s swinging the bat,” Redmond said. “We just have got to get a couple other guys in front of him on base consistently and get some other guys to get some big hits. We’ve been pretty quiet the last couple of days.”
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