Dodgers 3, Reds 1: Postgame thoughts.

To acknowledge the obvious: this game didn’t count. It was called after four innings due to heavy rain at Camelback Ranch. We’re just going to pretend these postgame thoughts do count. Try to keep up.

Chris Capuano threw four innings, which was significant because he took a long and winding road to get there. Capuano was scheduled to start the Dodgers’ night game at home against the Cincinnati Reds when the day began. When it appeared that the afternoon game in Scottsdale against the Giants might not be rained out, Capuano made the trip and was penciled in to relieve Ted Lilly.

That didn’t happen; the Dodgers-Giants game was rained out in the second inning with the Dodgers leading 4-0.

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Reds beat Cardinals, Dodgers stay alive.

The Dodgers’ faint wild-card hopes stayed alive for at least a couple more hours Tuesday night after the St. Louis Cardinals lost 3-1 to the Cincinnati Reds. The Cardinals’ magic number to clinch the wild-card berth is 1.

The Reds broke open a 1-1 game with two runs in the sixth inning. With runners on second and third base and none out, Jay Bruce hit an RBI single off Chris Carpenter (0-2). Former Dodger catcher Dioner Navarro added an insurance run on an RBI single off Carpenter to give the Reds a 3-1 lead.

The game began at 5:15 p.m., early enough for the left-field video board to show the first four innings. By the time Chris Capuano threw his first pitch for the Dodgers, the game was tied 1-1 on a solo home run by the Reds’ Scott Rolen and a sacrifice fly by the Cardinals’ Matt Holliday.

The Dodgers still must beat the San Francisco Giants tonight and tomorrow, and the Reds must beat the Cardinals again tomorrow, for the Dodgers and Cardinals to meet in a one-game playoff Thursday at Dodger Stadium.