‘I belong.’ Chase Petty shines for Reds against loaded Los Angeles Dodgers lineup

GLENDALE, Arizona − Chase Petty paused and eventually conceded he couldn’t remember a bigger moment in his young baseball life.

That’s because the 21-year-old Petty’s three-inning outing against the mighty Los Angeles Dodgers was the biggest moment of his career. And it was not only a career highlight, but a moment shared with family and friends he’ll likely remember for the rest of his career. Most importantly, Petty’s game was a statement to the entire Cincinnati Reds organization.

In his first-ever Cactus League start for the Reds, Petty struck out four, walked none, lit up the radar gun, and allowed just one run on four hits against an all-world Dodgers lineup Tuesday at Camelback Ranch.

“One through nine in that lineup, it speaks for itself,” Petty said. “Seeing that lineup earlier today and seeing who I was going to face, I was so excited. It brought a smile to my face because, like I said, I want to see (whether) I belong and, like I said, I felt like I proved I’m right where I am.”

Make no mistake: The 2025 Dodgers, like last year’s World Series champion Dodgers, are the “it” club in baseball and the team to beat − except they’re more star-studded and potentially better than a year ago.

These Dodgers are monied. They are storied. They are decorated and celebrated, and gathering a global following of fans and media alike due in part to a growing contingent of Japanese stars on their roster.

For the better part of three innings, the juggernaut Los Angeles team didn’t get much right against Petty, who lists the hard-scrabble Philadelphia suburb of Camden, New Jersey, as his hometown.

The Dodgers’ modern-day Murderer’s Row of Shohei Ohtani, Mookie Betts, Freddie Freeman and Teoscar Hernandez combined for 128 home runs in 2024 and has five combined MVP awards between them. On Tuesday against Petty, those four players went 3-for-7 and drove in a single run.