WASHINGTON (AP/WKRC) – Nick Lodolo pitched his first complete game with eight strikeouts and the Cincinnati Reds not only beat the Washington Nationals 5-0 on Wednesday but also broke a team record set 55 years ago.
Lodolo (8-6) allowed four hits with no walks. The 27-year-old left-hander made his 21st start of the season and has 124 1/3 innings pitched, a single-season career best.
Per Matt Wilkes, Lodolo threw 105 pitches, the fewest by a Reds pitcher in a nine-inning complete-game shutout since Bronson Arroyo (91) on September 21, 2011.
The Reds now have 2 complete-game shutouts this season, noted Wilkes, from Lodolo and Andrew Abbott. That’s the first time they’ve had multiple nine-inning complete game shutouts since 2014, when Johnny Cueto (twice) and Homer Bailey did it.
The Reds, who lost the first two games of the series, avoided being swept for the first time this season. Cincinnati set a franchise record with 33 straight series without being swept, breaking the mark of 32 set by the 1970 Reds, who went on to win the National League pennant.