Reds get extra-inning homer from Eugenio Suarez, down Cardinals 6-4 to win series

The Joe Nuxhall Memorial Honorary Star of the Game

Eugenio Suarez looks more and more the part of a star by the game, and Sunday’s outing against the St. Louis Cardinals was no different.

After the Cincinnati Reds escaped a bases-loaded, nobody-out jam in the Bottom of the 9th and snuck their way into extra innings, Suarez’s 2-run dinger off Bud Norris blew the lid off the game, putting the Reds ahead for good and locking up a series victory.

It was the 31st dinger of the season for the now cornerstone hot-corner-stone of the Reds for now and the future, and his pair of ribbies put him at an even 100 for the season. He added a walk, too, for good measure, since he’s been watching Joey Votto like a hawk the last few years.

Honorable Mentions are due to: Billy Hamilton, who legged out a pair of doubles, scored twice, and took a walk; Brandon Dixon, who launched a dinger; Lucas Sims, who fired 2+ scoreless, hitless innings, fanning 3 against a lone walk; Scott Schebler, who walked twice and was also on-base again via HBP; Scooter Gennett, who singled twice and drove in a run; and Joey Votto, who walked thrice, scored twice, and drove in a run.

Key Plays

• The Reds got off to a quick start against Cardinals starter Luke Weaver in the Top of the 1st, ultimately plating a pair of runs. Hamilton’s first double of the day opened play, and he moved over to 3B on a productive Jose Peraza groundout. Votto then walked, Billy scored on Scooter’s single - that also moved Votto to 3B - and that proved large when Votto was then able to score on a wild pitch. Reds led, 2-0.
• Anthony DeSclafani wasn’t sharp in his outing, but he managed to battle through it - at least through the first trio of innings. The Cardinals finally got to him in the Bottom of the 4th, however, tying the game on an RBI double down the LF line off the bat of Harrison Bader, and later on a cheeky RBI drag-bunt down the 1B line by Greg Garcia that effectively ended Disco’s day. Game tied, 2-2.
• Hamilton being the dynamo that he is directly led to Cincinnati’s next lead, as he rounded 1B like a bat out of hell on his would-be single into RF and beat Jose Martinez’s throw into 2B for a manufatured double off Carlos Martinez to lead off the Top of the 7th. A sac bunt from Peraza and a sac fly from Votto later, and the Reds had a 3-2 lead.
• The Cardinals managed to tie the game on a bases-loaded infield single by Bader off Jared Hughes in the Bottom of the 8th, as he beat out the slow grounder despite a bare-handed effort by Peraza. Of course, the run that scored was the product of a leadoff walk, and those things haunt, y’know. Game tied, 3-3.
• Michael Lorenzen threw a chin-high cheeseball to Jairo Munoz in the Bottom of the 9th, which Munoz slapped down the RF line for a leadoff double. That prompted an intentional walk of Matt Carpenter to set up a potential double-play (and to avoid the guy who’s been the best hitter in the NL over the last month and a half), but a Francisco Pena bunt single followed on a ball the Reds infield attempted to see roll foul, but didn’t. That loaded the bags with none out and prompted a swap of Brandon Dixon for Scott Schebler to go with a five-man infield, but the Reds somehow managed to wriggle out of it after a K of Martinez, a 4-2 putout at home, and a pop-out into RF. To extra innings they went...
• It was Votto with the walk, Suarez with the 2-run dinger, and a follow-up blast by Dixon that effectively put this one on ice for the Reds in the Top of the 10th, as Raisel Iglesias later came on to put this one away - although he certainly made a meal of that after walking the leadoff batter, allowing a run, and later walking another pair of batters, too. Reds won, 6-4!

Tony Graphanino

Other Notes

• DeSclafani avoided big damage, but he was very obviously missing his spots routinely on the mound, and began to look a bit frustrated with it - and rightfully so. His final line - 3.2 IP, 5 H, 2 ER, 2 BB, 4 K on 72 pitches - largely displayed how well he managed to dodge larger damage, but this was simply not his day.
• Sims, on the other hand, looked quite good in his time on the mound. He fired a pair of spotless innings through the heart of the St. Louis order, fanning 3 in the process, only to walk the first batter he faced in his third inning to get pulled in favor of Jared Hughes. I’d be shocked if he’s not given an opportunity to start for the Reds a time or three down the stretch based solely on his reputation and established work in the minors, but what he did today surely helped that cause, too - especially since he’s only thrown about 112 IP across all levels so far this year.
• Votto’s sac fly in the 7th was his 887th career RBI in a Cincinnati uniform, which moved him past Ted Kluszewski on the all-time team RBI list.
• The Reds shipped Preston Tucker back to the Atlanta Braves midway through this game, getting cash considerations in return, as The Athletic’s David O’Brien reported. In case you hadn’t noticed, Duvall has hit just .105/.171/.105 in 41 PA since joining the Braves with no dingers, no ribbies, and a future non-tender on his ledger since the deal.
• The Reds will travel to Pittsburgh tonight, and on Monday they’ll open a series against the Pirates with a Labor Day matinee. Matt Harvey will start, and he’ll be opposed by Trevor Williams. First pitch is set for 1:35 PM ET.
• Tunes.