Dodgers push past Reds, 6-1

Reporting from Cincinnati â€”  KEY MOMENT: Adrian Gonzalez doubled to lead off the second inning, ending an 0-for-20 skid, and Andre Ethier doubled him home. Neither Gonzalez nor Ethier had an extra-base hit this month. The Dodgers had the lead for good, and Gonzalez doubled again, the first multihit game for the Dodgers’ cleanup hitter this month and his first game with multiple extra-base hits since May 20.

AT THE PLATE: The Dodgers tied a season high with five doubles, with the two from Gonzalez and one each from Ethier, Yasiel Puig and Dee Gordon. The Dodgers’ 12 hits included two from Justin Turner, who has raised his batting average from .252 to .276 in four days with eight hits in 19 at-bats.

ON THE MOUND: Josh Beckett (4-3) pitched six scoreless innings for the victory, giving up two hits and striking out seven. His pitch counts in the three starts since his 128-pitch no-hitter: 88, 99, 90. Beckett also executed a perfect Punch-and-Judy maneuver, pulling back his bat from an apparent bunt attempt to chop a single into left field, a pivotal hit in the Dodgers’ three-run fifth inning.

MYSTERY GUEST: Puig met NASCAR driver Dale Earnhardt Jr. before the game. The two posed for a picture and exchanged greetings on Twitter. Wrote Earnhardt: “I can’t spell his name, and he thinks I’m a great rally racer.�

MIDNIGHT HOUR: The Dodgers rushed off the field during batting practice when the skies opened and the thunderstorms started. First pitch was delayed from 7:12 p.m. EDT until 9:17 p.m., and the game ended at 12:51 a.m.

MIDNIGHT SNACK: Matt Kemp’s fourth strikeout was the Dodgers’ 11th of the game, sending the hundreds of fans left at Great American Ball Park into a happy uproar. When a visiting team strikes out 11 times, Cincinnati fans get free pizza.

UP NEXT: The Dodgers’ Hyun-jin Ryu (7-2, 3.08 ERA) faces the Reds’ Johnny Cueto (5-5, 1.97) on Wednesday at 4 p.m. PDT at Cincinnati’s Great American Ball Park. TV: SportsNet LA; Radio: 570, 1020.