Dodgers seal 14th consecutive playoff berth, 'one of the goals'

CINCINNATI -- The Los Angeles Dodgers clinched their 14th consecutive playoff berth with a 4-1 win over the Cincinnati Reds on Monday night behind Tarik Skubal's seven shutout innings and home runs by Kyle Tucker and Teoscar Hernandez.

Los Angeles tied the record set by Atlanta from 1991 through 2005.

The two-time defending World Series champions cut their magic number to three for a fifth straight NL West title and 13th in 14 seasons. The Dodgers became the third team assured of a playoff spot after Milwaukee and Tampa Bay.

"We achieved one of the goals for this year," Hernandez said on the SportsNet LA postgame show. "We are going to keep working really hard and get ready for the playoffs."

Skubal (10-7) allowed three hits, struck out nine and walked one as he gained his second win against Cincinnati in seven days. Skubal allowed two runs in 7 1/3 innings in a 3-2 victory on Sept. 8.

He is 3-2 with a 2.52 ERA in eight starts since the Dodgers (91-59) acquired him from Detroit Tigers on Aug. 2.

Elly de la Cruz hit a 457-foot homer to center off Evan Phillips in the ninth, the longest homer by a Cincinnati player this season and the longest this year at Great American Ballpark.

All three of Los Angeles' hits ended up resulting in runs.

Tucker led off the second by driving an upper inside fastball from Nick Lodolo (3-5) into the right-field stands, his third home run in five games.

Tucker walked with two outs in the fourth and Hernandez homered to right-center. Kike Hernandez added an RBI single in the seventh.

"The confidence is way high right now," Hernandez said. "The plan that we put together, before games, is working too."