Hernández Powers Dodgers to Fifth Straight Win, Improve to 5-0 to Start the Season
The Los Angeles Dodgers are five games into the season and still haven't lost. Tuesday's 6-3 win over the Cincinnati Reds looked a lot like the four that came before it: timely hitting, a strong turn from the rotation, and Teoscar Hernández doing damage in the middle of the lineup.
Hernández was the story from start to finish, finishing with 51.0 fantasy points to lead all players on both sides. That kind of production doesn't happen by accident — Hernández drove the game, and the Dodgers rode him to their fifth consecutive victory to open the year.
Emmet Sheehan gave Los Angeles exactly what it needed on the mound. The right-hander turned in a 50.2-point outing, controlling the game long enough to hand a lead to the bullpen and let the offense build on it. It's the kind of start that sets a tone for a homestand, and with the Dodgers now 5-0, Sheehan's turn through the rotation looks like one of the early bright spots of the season.
Cincinnati didn't go quietly. Elly De La Cruz continues to be the engine of this Reds lineup, putting up 38.0 fantasy points in the loss. He's shown through the first stretch of games that he's going to be a problem for opposing pitchers all year, and Tuesday was no exception even in a losing effort. Chase Burns started for the Reds and left an impression too, posting 28.5 points on the mound, but it wasn't enough support to overcome the deficit the Dodgers built. Eugenio Suárez chipped in a strong day at the plate as well, tallying 25.0 points in the middle of Cincinnati's order, giving the Reds' lineup some thump even as the final score got away from them.
For the Dodgers, the depth of contribution behind Hernández was just as notable as the headline performance. Max Muncy added 21.0 points, continuing to show he can still swing a productive bat in the middle of a lineup that doesn't lack for star power. Freddie Freeman chipped in 14.5 points, a steady if unspectacular day that fits the pattern of a lineup getting its production from multiple spots rather than leaning on one or two names every night. Evan Phillips closed things out effectively from the bullpen, adding 11.0 points and helping keep the door shut once Sheehan turned things over. Alex Call and Will Smith rounded out the scoring with 9.0 and 5.0 points, respectively — modest contributions, but the kind of complementary production that separates a team that wins one game from a team that's now won five in a row to start the year.
Cincinnati's supporting cast, meanwhile, struggled to match the top of its order. Héctor Rodríguez managed 13.0 points, Brandon Williamson added 12.8 in a relief look, and Carlos Jorge chipped in 10.0, but the Reds simply didn't have enough spread through the lineup to keep pace with a Dodgers team clicking on all cylinders. Dane Myers and Sal Stewart were held to 3.5 and 2.0 points, a quiet night that mirrored the team's overall offensive output.
What does this mean going forward? For the Dodgers, it's confirmation that last year's difference-makers are picking up right where they left off. A 5-0 start built on strong starting pitching and a red-hot Hernández is about as good a sign as a fanbase could ask for in the season's opening week. The lineup is deep, the bullpen is holding leads, and if Sheehan's outing is any indication, the rotation depth behind the front-line arms might be better than advertised.
For the Reds, there's plenty to like in De La Cruz and Suárez, but the surrounding pieces need to find their footing fast. Dropping this one to the Dodgers isn't fatal in September's opening days, but it's not the start Cincinnati wanted either, and the gap in overall production was obvious from top to bottom.
Performances like Hernández's are exactly the kind of outing that makes setting a lineup on JockBroker worth the attention — when a single player can produce 51 fantasy points in a night, the difference between a good roster and a great one comes down to who you started.
