Jesse Winker’s walk-off single gives Cincinnati Reds a 1-0 win over Chicago White Sox

The Joe Nuxhall Memorial Honorary Star of the Game

On the heels of a start against the Los Angeles Dodgers where he struck out 11 and finally looked like the Sonny Gray we’ve come to adore, the Cincinnati Reds righty looked filthy once again on Wednesday against the Chicago White Sox.

Sonny yielded just 2 H and 2 BB in 7 brilliant IP, fanning 8 on 90 pitches. He painted corners like Sonny does, spun both his fastball and breaking ball like Sonny does, and appears to have put aside the rough first few starts he had after coming off the IL.

A very notable hat-tip is due to Jesse Winker, too, who walked, doubled, and singled in the winning (and only) run in the 10th.

Honorable Mentions are due to: Tejay Antone, who bounced back with his usual electric stuff, facing the minimum in his 8th and 9th inning day; Nick Senzel, who singled and walked twice from the leadoff spot; and Lucas Sims, who navigated the Top of the 10th without letting the runner on 2B score.

Key Plays

• The game went into the Bottom of the 9th at 0-0, an absolute rarity in the history of GABP. With 2-out in the inning, Blandino poked a single into right center that was booted enough to allow him to take 2B on the error, and after Michael Kopech walked Tyler Naquin intentionally to get to India, who then walked unintentionally to load the bags and send Kopech to the showers in favor of Liam Hendriks. Hendriks got Tucker Barnhart to ground out to 3B, though, and that ended the rally.
• The Bottom of the 10th saw the Reds finally punch. Tucker was at 2B to begin the inning, and Senzel’s single put runners on the corners with nobody out. That brought up Winker, whose single into CF scored Tuck and gave the Reds a 1-0 win.

Tony Graphanino

Other Notes

• It’s another off-day for the Reds tomorrow, but after that they jump into a helluva grind. Beginning Friday they’ll play on 17 consecutive days, with a three-city road trip through Cleveland, Pittsburgh, and Denver on the front end of it. In total, they’ll play on 30 of the next 31 days beginning Friday, so one hopes they’ve been using these recent off-days accordingly.
• Speaking of off-days, hopefully tomorrow will allow Nick Castellanos to get right. He left Tuesday’s game early and was a late scratch for today’s game with a tight back.
• In a similar vein, Joey Votto exited mid-way through this one after taking a Dallas Keuchel pitch off his left thumb. He stayed in for a bit while in obvious discomfort before exiting in favor of Kyle Farmer. So, there’s that to agonize over for another day, too.
• Friday’s roadtrip/series opener in Cleveland will feature Wade Miley on the mound for the Reds opposite Zach Plesac. First pitch is set for 7:10 PM ET in whatever they call The Jake these days.
• Tunes.