KSReds: Cincinnati Reds Win Series in Milwaukee

And this one belongs to the Reds! Fans have been able to celebrate that wonderful phrase much more often in the second half of the season. The Cincinnati Reds haven’t lost a series since the All-Star break and are now an even .500 after the dreadful 3-22 start to the season. Sunday’s rubber match required some dramatic extra-inning heroics, but the win came nonetheless. Cincy is now 4-2 on their road trip.

The nine-game, 10-day road trip rages on as the calendar flips to a new week. The Reds now head to New York for a three-game series against the Mets. Justin Dunn is set to take the ball on Monday night at 7:10 p.m. Eastern Time. Mike Minor will pitch on Tuesday and Wednesday’s starter is still undecided.

Pair of Long Balls Sink the Reds

The Cincinnati Reds dug themselves a hole on Friday night in Milwaukee that was too big to climb out of. Spot starter Robert Dugger was tagged for five runs on four hits in his four innings of work. He also walked four batters. All five of the Brewers runs came via the long ball. In the first inning, Rowdy Tellez turned on one and blasted it 432 feet into the right-field seats. Tellez’s home run was a two-run shot. Then, in the second, Tyrone Taylor belted a three-run shot 407 feet into the left field bleachers. Both home runs were absolute bombs and gave the Brew Crew a 5-0 lead after just two innings.

Dugger struggled mightily in his start, but the Reds bullpen threw the ball very well. Collectively, they threw four innings of shutout baseball allowing just three hits while striking out six. Ross Detwiler, Luis Cessa, Ian Gibaut, and Reiver Sanmartin did what they could to keep the game competitive. However, the offense just couldn’t get anything going. Kyle Farmer drove in the lone run with an RBI single in the fifth inning. On the back of seven innings from Eric Lauer the Brewers took the series opener 5-1.

The Jose Barrero Game

The ball was flying out of American Family Field on Saturday evening. 24 hours earlier the long ball doomed the Cincinnati Reds. However, this time around, they came out on top thanks to some timely home runs. In total, the Reds belted four homers including the first two home runs of Jose Barrero’s career. After two RBI doubles by Albert Almora Jr. and Jonathan India in the second inning, Barrero hit a two run shot in the fourth inning to make it 4-0.

In the bottom of the fourth, the Brewers made it interesting with a pair of home runs of their own. Andrew McCutchen had a solo shot followed by a two-run homer off the bat of Keston Hiura to make it 4-3. Barrero then answered in the sixth with his second long ball of the evening to create a little breathing room at 5-3. Joey Votto and Donovan Solano also went deep in the seventh and ninth innings respectively to build the Reds’ advantage up to 7-3. However, Hunter Strickland didn’t let the game end without some nerves.

Strickland’s two runs on two hits, but the insurance runs scored earlier by Cincinnati were enough to hold on for a 7-5 victory. The middle relief was excellent once again for the Reds as they would even the series against the Brewers at one game apiece setting up Sunday’s rubber match.

Reds Win Game and Series in Dramatic Fashion

With reigning Cy Young winner Corbin Burnes on the mound for the Milwaukee Brewers you knew it was going to be a battle to score runs. At the plate, Willy Adames knocked a 405-foot home run in the third inning to put the Brew Crew on top. Burnes didn’t allow a hit until the fourth inning, but then in the fifth rookie catcher Michael Papierski hit his first career home run to tie the game back up at one run a piece. The pitcher’s duel was dead set from that point on for a few more innings.

Graham Ashcraft wasn’t his sharpest but still pitched very well for the Reds. He went five and two-thirds innings allowing just one run on four hits. The bullpen was equally sharp besides Hunter Strickland allowing the game-tying home run in the bottom of the ninth inning. Luckily for the Reds, a two-out double by Donovan Solano scored Jonathan India in the eighth inning to put them ahead 2-1 before Strickland blew the save.

In the top of the 10th inning, Aristides Aquino bounced one to the third base as the leadoff batter but the throw went up the first base line scoring the runner from second base. Aquino came all the way around to third base on the errant throw and scored via a sacrifice fly from Solano to make it 4-2. That lead was enough to hold in the bottom of the 10th for Ross Detwiler to record the save and tip the series to the Cincinnati Reds’ favor. They are now 44-63 on the season.