The Cincinnati Reds broke out the power bats Tuesday night, hitting five home runs enroute to a 12-6 win over the Tampa Bay Rays and extending their winning streak to five games.
It was 12-2 in the ninth, but Kyle Nicolas hurt the Reds’ chance to improve their run differential by facing nine Rays batters, walking five of them and giving up four runs.
The Reds scored early and often in this one and then just kept scoring. Dane Myers led off the game with a walk and one batter later, Elly De La Cruz launched a 414-foot, 111.6 mph home run to right center field to put the Reds up 2-0. They would extend that lead to 4-0 in the second inning with back-to-back home runs from Ke’Bryan Hayes and Dane Myers, the first of the season for both players.
Spencer Steer played add-on in the fifth with a solo home run off Griffin Jax to make it 5-0. In the sixth, Matt McLain doubled with one out to score Hayes and make it 6-0, Myers euro-stepped his way around a tag at home plate to make it 7-0, and after a double steal from McLain and De La Cruz, Sal Stewart continued his hot hitting with a two-run single to make it 9-0. De La Cruz made it 11-2 in the seventh when he hit a single to right field that scored Rece Hinds and Myers. De La Cruz would also hit a 406 foot home run in the ninth off a lob pitch from Rays utility infielder Ben Williamson.
While the Reds’ offense was humming, Chase Burns was dealing. Burns worked out of an early one-out jam in the second. He let two Rays hitters reach with one out via a single and a walk, but got Hunter Feduccia and Taylor Walls to strike out and end the inning. Burns pitched 5.2 innings, allowing just two runs on four hits with eight strikeouts and two walks. His one mistake was a two-run home run to Jonathan Aranda in the sixth inning, and it really wasn’t a bad pitch. It likely would’ve been a ball if Aranda hadn’t made contact, but he went down to golf it over the right field fence. The game was already 9-0 at this point, so it ended up being a low-leverage home run.
Key Moment of the Game
Ke’Bryan Hayes and Dane Myers hit back-to-back home runs in the second inning to give the Reds a 4-0 lead, one that they would not relinquish.
Notes
-In 2025, De La Cruz had five home runs in 199 at-bats against left-handed pitching. In 2026, he already has five home runs against left-handed pitching in just 28 at-bats. Six of his eight home runs this season have come from the right side of the plate, including a right-on-right home run in the ninth inning against that Rays position player.
-Hayes and Myers were huge contributors in tonight’s game. Myers went 1-for-3 with three walks and four runs scored. Hayes, meanwhile, went 1-for-3 with a home run, two walks, and two runs scored. He also had a great ABS challenge that turned a strikeout into a walk, which ultimately ended up in him scoring that inning.
-Chase Burns threw mostly fastballs and sliders tonight, only throwing his changeup four times, all to left-handed hitters. He got Rays hitters to swing and miss at 10 of his 21 sliders.
-The Reds are eight games above .500 for the first time since August 3, 2023.
Up Next
Cincinnati Reds vs. Tampa Bay Rays
Wednesday, April 22, 1:10 PM EDT
Brandon Williamson (2-1, 4.35 ERA) vs. Nick Martinez (0-1, 2.45 ERA)