The Cincinnati Reds pitching staff only allowed two hits on the night but the visiting team still had to come from behind late on Friday night. Eugenio Suarez came through with a big time go-ahead home run in the 7th to put Cincinnati ahead for good as they held on for a 4-2 win to start their series against the St. Louis Cardinals.
FinalRHECincinnati Reds (48-54)4110St. Louis Cardinals (52-51)220W: Garcia (1-2) L: Soriano (3-3) SV: Pagan (10)Statcast | Box Score | Game Thread
Neither team was doing much at the plate in the first two innings. But in the top of the 3rd inning the Reds would get singles from Tyler Stephenson and Edwin Arroyo to put two men on with one out. They wouldn’t get either runner in. Rhett Lowder continued to deal, though, retiring the side in order for the third straight inning.
In the 4th inning Cincinnati would again have two men on base, this time with two outs after Spencer Steer kept the inning alive with a walk. That brought Tyler Stephenson to the plate and he hit a ground-rule double to bring in a run, but the ball bouncing over the wall almost assuredly cost the team a second run and it was one they’d strand at third base as they took a 1-0 lead.
Two innings later the Cardinals got a leadoff runner when Rhett Lowder hit Ivan Herrera with a pitch. He would then steal second base. Nathan Church then drew a 2-out walk to keep the inning going. That was a big moment in the game because Blaze Jordan followed up with a double to the wall in left-center that plated both runners to put St. Louis on top 2-1.
Cincinnati found themselves in a good spot in the top of the 6th after back-to-back singles from Eugenio Suarez and Nathaniel Lowe to begin the inning. After fouling off the first pitch he saw, Spencer Steer then squared around to try and bunt and he popped it up towards third base and it was caught by pitcher Dustin May on the fly. Tyler Stephenson was then hit by a pitch to load the bases with one out. But the Reds once again couldn’t come through as a pop up and a routine fly ball ended the inning and stranded everyone.
St. Louis went to the bullpen for the top of the 7th and Cincinnati didn’t exactly give George Soriano a warm welcome. After a line out began the inning Sal Stewart singled into left field. Eugenio Suarez then came through and hit a ball that nearly landed in the Mississippi River. He got a hanging slider and hit it 435 feet for a go-ahead 2-run home run.
After Brock Burke and Tejay Antone kept the Cardinals off of the board in the 7th and 8th innings, the Reds offense went to work in the top of the 9th. Elly De La Cruz led off with a walk and then stole second base. A wild pitch then moved him up to third base. Sal Stewart then did what he seems to do more often than not and came through in the clutch to bring in a run, singling into left field to extend the lead to 4-2.
Emilio Pagan took the mound for Cincinnati in the bottom of the 9th to face the middle of the St. Louis lineup. The Reds closer sat the 3-4-5 hitters down in order, striking out the last two to pick up the save and seal a 4-2 win.
Key Moment of the Game
Eugenio Suarez hitting a 2-run home run in the 7th to turn a 1-run deficit into a 1-run lead.
Notes Worth Noting
Eugenio Suarez has homered in five of his last eight games.
Tyler Stephenson had two hits in the game and he remains red-hot. Over his last 16 games he’s hitting .375/.407/.589 with eight extra-base hits.
The win was the Reds 5th on the road trip, guaranteeing them a winning road trip with two games remaining. They’ve also won three in a row after taking the final two games in Seattle.
The 3-game winning streak is the first streak that long for Cincinnati in two months, with them last winning three in a row back between May 23rd and the 26th.
Up Next for the Cincinnati Reds
Cincinnati Reds vs St. Louis Cardinals
Saturday July 25th, 7:15pm ET
Hunter Greene (2-1, 6.06 ERA) vs Andre Pallante (10-6, 4.02 ERA)
