Cincinnati Reds hitters whiffed on a big ninth-inning opportunity in a 2-1 loss to the Baltimore Orioles before 33,202 at Great American Ball Park.
| Final | R | H | E |
|---|---|---|---|
| Baltimore Orioles (22-11) | 2 | 7 | 0 |
| Cincinnati Reds (16-17) |
1 | 6 | 0 |
| W: Means (1-0) L: Abbott (1-4) Sv: Cano (1) |
|||
| Statcast | Box Score | Game Thread | |||
Trailing by one run with the bases loaded and one out in the bottom of the ninth, Christian Encarnacion-Strand struck out swinging and Jeimer Candelario popped up to send the Reds to their fourth consecutive loss. A ninth-inning run ended a 21-inning scoreless streak by the Reds offense dating back to Wednesday’s game in San Diego
Today’s loss puts the third-place Reds 4 1/2 games behind first-place Milwaukee, and 3 1/2 games behind second-place Chicago.
The Offense
Reds hitters’ composite box-score line: 6-for-31, 2 walks drawn, 10 strikeouts.
Orioles lefthander John Means made his first start and appearance of the year at the major league level, and completely shut down the Reds offense over his seven innings. He allowed only three hits while striking out eight.
Former Reds lefthander Cionel Perez came on in the bottom of the eighth and allowed a leadoff single to Jeimer Candelario, but Santiago Espinal grounded into a quick double play to erase Candelario. Pinch-hitter Luke Maile flied out to end the inning.
In the ninth, facing closer Craig Kimbrel, pinch-hitter Jake Fraley led off with a single, followed by a Jonathan India walk. That brought Elly De La Cruz to the plate representing the winning run, but De La Cruz looked at strike three from Kimbrel. Spencer Steer then hit an opposite-field single to right, scoring Fraley and sending pinch-runner Bubba Thompson to third with one out.
Orioles Manager Brandon Hyde then replaced Kimbrel with righthander Yennier Cano to face Tyler Stephenson. During Stephenson’s at-bat, Steer stole second to put the winning run at second. On a 3-2 pitch, Stephenson walked to load the bases. But the three ducks on the pond did not advance thereafter, and the Reds fell below .500.
India’s 2-for-3 performance raised his batting average to .225.
The Pitching
Reds pitchers’ line for the day: 9 innings, 7 hits and 1 walk allowed, with 13 strikeouts and just two solo homers allowed. You can’t argue with what the hurlers produced this evening.
Baltimore’s first two batters of the game reached on singles, and it didn’t take long for the here-we-go-again thoughts to creep in on the heels of a three-game losing streak. But starter Andrew Abbott shifted into another gear, popping up Ryan Mountcastle to left, and striking out Anthony Santander and Jordan Westburg both swinging — all while both runners stayed glued to their bases. It seemed like a very good sign.
In the third inning, the Orioles had runners on first and third with two out, and Abbott benefited from an excellent play by first baseman Encarnacion-Strand on a hot shot by Santander right at the first-base bag for out number three.
Baltimore broke a scoreless tie in the top of the fourth on a one-out Jorge Mateo solo home run. An inning later, Adley Rutschman did the same to make it 2-0.
Manager David Bell removed Abbott from the game after five innings with a pitch count of 84, 60 for strikes. That’s a 71 percent strike rate, sterling for any pitcher. In his five innings, Abbott allowed seven hits while striking out eight and walking none. You really can’t ask for much more from a starting pitcher, particularly against a very good-hitting team.
Nick Martinez, who surprisingly had the fourth-highest WAR on the team before today’s game (0.7), pitched a scoreless sixth and seventh. Lucas Sims and Sam Moll finished with a scoreless inning apiece.