De La Rosa, Pollock lead D-backs to 6-3 win over Reds
CINCINNATI (AP) The Reds seventh straight loss dropped them to the bottom of the NL Central.
Rubby De La Rosa allowed two runs in seven innings and A.J. Pollock homered while enjoying his second consecutive four-hit game to help the Arizona Diamondbacks send the Cincinnati Reds to their seventh straight loss with a 6-3 win over a former teammate Friday night.
Reds' rookie left-hander David Holmberg, who made his major league debut with the Diamondbacks in 2013, set a single-game career high by allowing 11 hits. Holmberg (1-3) gave up five runs with one walk and two strikeouts and hit a batter in five innings.
''It was another night when the command I'm looking for wasn't there,'' said Holmberg, who counted half of the current Diamondbacks as former teammates in the minor leagues. ''I need to go deeper in the game.''
The Reds bullpen is hurting. Aroldis Chapman has been unavailable as he rests a tired shoulder.
''It's hard now. We have a couple guys that are day-to-day,'' Reds' manager Bryan Price said. ''It makes it challenging. Every team goes through it. We're trying to catch up.''
Pollock scored three runs and Yasmany Tomas added his own solo shot for the Diamondbacks.
Joey Votto hit his 23rd homer in the eighth inning off of Keith Hessler for the Reds, who went into the game on the verge of falling into last place in the NL Central. They led Milwaukee by a half-game.
De La Rosa (11-5) improved to 5-0 with a 2.54 ERA in seven starts since the All-Star break. He allowed seven hits with one walk, six strikeouts and a wild pitch. He also had two hits.
''He did a good job,'' manager Chip Hale said. ''If there's a guy on our staff who can go deep into a game, it's him. He's a horse. He's got the ability to throw a hundred pitches. He gave us seven good innings.''
De La Rosa (11-5) improved to 5-0 with a 2.54 ERA in seven starts since the All-Star break. He allowed seven hits with one walk, six strikeouts and a wild pitch.
''I'm just trying to get ahead of the hitters and attack the zone,'' De La Rosa said of his hot streak
Addison Reed finished the eighth and Brad Ziegler pitched the ninth for his 23rd save.
Pollock, who drove in the last two runs of Arizona's 5-4 win over Cincinnati on Thursday, produced the first run Friday with his 13th homer of the season with one out in the first inning.
''I think he'll probably be in the lineup tomorrow,'' Hale deadpanned.
Tomas led off Arizona's four-run fourth with his eighth homer, a 403-foot drive to center field. Ender Inciarte added a sacrifice fly before Welington Castillo capped the inning with a bases-loaded, two-run single.
The Reds broke up De La Rosa's bid for a shutout in the sixth on Votto's one-out walk, Todd Frazier's line drive to left that just Ender Inciarte almost caught with a diving stab and Jay Bruce's RBI groundout.
TRAINER'S ROOM
Diamondbacks: RHP Archie Bradley is scheduled to make a rehab start on Sunday with Single-A Visalia. Bradley, on the disabled list since June 2 with right shoulder tendinitis, threw four scoreless innings with three hits, three walks and six strikeouts for Arizona's rookie-level team on Tuesday.
Reds: INF Brandon Phillips remains day-to-day with inflammation in his right biceps tendon. Phillips pinch-hit and grounded out in the seventh.
UP NEXT
Diamondbacks: RHP Randall Delgado (4-3, 2.70) makes his first start of the season after 43 relief appearances in the third game of the four-game series on Saturday. He is 0-3 with a 4.32 ERA in five games, including four starts, against Cincinnati and 0-2 with a 6.08 ERA in three starts at Great American Ball Park.
Reds: RHP Anthony DeSclafani (7-8, 3.72) makes his 29th career start, 24th for Cincinnati, on Saturday. The rest of the all-rookie Reds starting rotation has made 27 career starts.
SEEING ROJO
The Reds wore ''Los Rojos'' on their jerseys to honor people of Spanish heritage. The team will unveil a statue of Hall of Fame player Tony Perez on Satuday. Perez took out the lineup card along with David Concepcion, Cesar Geronimo and Reds' coach Freddie Benevides.
SEEING RED
A.J. Pollock has eight hits in 11 at bats in the first two games of the series. He has hit safely in 10 straight games against Cincinnati and is 20-for-43 (.465) against them in his career.