Ronald Acuna Jr. hit two of the Braves four home runs on Saturday night in Cincinnati. Those four home runs were plenty for Atlanta as they picked up a 5-2 win over the Reds in the second game of their 3-game series at Great American Ball Park this weekend.
| Final | R | H | E |
|---|---|---|---|
| Atlanta Braves (40-19) | 5 | 7 | 0 |
| Cincinnati Reds (29-28) | 2 | 5 | 0 |
| W: Perez (3-3) L: Singer 2-5) SV: Iglesias (10) | |||
| Statcast | Box Score | Game Thread | |||
Atlanta would get the scoring started on the day in the top of the 2nd inning. Ozzie Albies led off with a ground-rule double and he took third on a groundout. Brady Singer then walked Mauricio Dubon before giving up an RBI single to Mike Yastrzemski. The Brave then called for either a safety squeeze but Jorge Mateo missed the bunt attempt and Dubon was caught too far off the bag and Tyler Stephenson threw down to third, but the ball got by Eugenio Suarez and Dubon took off to the plate. The ball, though, hit the bag and Suarez picked it up and fired home to get the out at the plate to keep it 1-0.
Cincinnati came out in the bottom of the 2nd and got that run back. Spencer Steer drew a 1-out walk and then a pitch later JJ Bleday hit a rocket into the right field corner that landed on the netting over the bullpen for a 2-run go-ahead home run. The lead didn’t last very long as Ronald Acuna Jr. hit a 1-out solo homer in the top of the 3rd to tie things up.
Atlanta would take the lead in the top of the 5th inning when Jorge Mateo got a hanging sweeper from Brady Singer and sent it into the upper deck for a go-ahead solo home run. Singer would issue three straight walks with two outs to load the bases, but was left in to face Ozzie Albies. The Reds would get out of the inning on a fly out to strand the three runners.
After Tejay Antone tossed a shutout 6th inning the Reds turned things over to Brock Burke. He would retire the first two batters on eight pitches, but Matt Olson hit his 16th home run of the season to push the Braves lead to 4-2 before Burke would get the final out of the 7th.
Tony Santillan threw a perfect 8th inning to keep the score close. Lyon Richardson, who was just called up prior to the game, came out for the 9th inning. He would give up a 2-out solo home run to Ronald Acuna Jr. that made it 5-2. Cincinnati then called on Sam Moll to get the final out of the top of the frame.
The Reds had to face their former closer in the bottom of the 9th as Raisel Iglesias took the mound for Atlanta to try and pick up a save. That’s exactly what happened as he retired the side in order as the Braves picked up their second win of the series, setting themselves up for a potential sweep on Sunday.
Key Moment of the Game
Jorge Mateo’s go-ahead home run in the 5th inning.
Notes Worth Noting
JJ Bleday was the only Reds with multiple hits in the game, going 2-4. He continues to get things done at the plate and is now hitting .295/.395/.629 with nine home runs and 15 extra-base hits in 29 games since being called up from Triple-A.
Spencer Steer went 1-3 with a walk to extend his on-base streak to 18 games.
Brady Singer gave up 11 home runs in 22.0 innings pitched in May. He’s now given up 16 home runs in 51.0 innings on the season. He’s given up multiple home runs in five of his 11 starts and all five of those games have come in his last six starts.
The Reds began the day in 4th place in the division, barely ahead of the Pirates in winning percentage with both teams being 6.0 games behind the Brewers. This loss combined with a win by Pittsburgh moves Cincinnati into last place in the division.
Up Next for the Cincinnati Reds
Atlanta Braves vs Cincinnati Reds
Sunday May 31st, 1:40pm ET
Spencer Strider (3-0, 3.46 ERA) vs Nick Lodolo (1-1, 5.57 ERA)