The Cincinnati Reds pitching trio of Rhett Lowder, Tony Santillan, and Alexis Diaz shut down the Houston Astros offense on Thursday afternoon. And they needed every last bit of it, too, because Ty France’s solo home run was the only run scored in the game. It was enough on this day as it helped propel the club to a win and helped them secure a 3-game sweep.
| Final | R | H | E |
|---|---|---|---|
| Houston Astros (75-65) |
0 | 4 | 0 |
| Cincinnati Reds (68-73) | 1 | 6 | 0 |
| W: Santillan (2-2) L: Abreu (2-3) SV: Diaz (25) |
|||
| Box Score | Game Thread | |||
Rhett Lowder’s second start in the big leagues gave him a taste of what big league defense can do for you. On the first play of the game Elly De La Cruz made a diving stop in the outfield grass and hopped up and fired a laser to first to get Jose Altuve. The next pitch saw Ty France snag a line drive on a dive to his right to rob Yordan Alvarez of a hit.
In the 4th inning Rhett Lowder retired the first batter of the inning, but then there was some controversy. Alex Bregman was hit by a pitch. Or he wasn’t. The Astros challenged the call on the field of a foul ball. The replay was as clear as humanly possible that his bat was nowhere near the baseball and yet somehow the call on the field stood as a foul ball and Bregman had to continue his at-bat, which eventually resulted in a strikeout and then the ejection of his manager Joe Espanda for yelling at the umpire. The next two batters reached base before a groundout ended the inning.
During the bottom of the inning the Reds would threaten a bit with a 2-out rally that loaded the bases after two singles and a walk. Santiago Espinal hit the ball back up the middle, but Jose Altuve was able to field it in the outfield grass and make the throw to Jeremy Pena at second to end the inning.
Rhett Lowder was cruising along through the 5th, but he got some more help from his defense in the 6th when Elly De La Cruz made another highlight reel caliber play when he fielded a grounder to his right in the outfield grass and threw across his body to first in time to get Yainer Diaz. Lowder returned for the 7th inning and got a grounder to begin the inning, but then walked Ben Gamel and gave up a single. Houston called on a pinch hitter and then Cincinnati went to their bullpen to bring in Tony Santillan to face Victor Caratini. Three pitches later Santillan induced a ground to second where Jonathan India started an inning-ending double play to keep the game scoreless.
The Astros called on Bryan Abreu to start the 7th inning and Ty France welcomed him with a solo home run on the second pitch of the inning to put Cincinnati in front. Tony Santillan returned for the 8th and work around a walk to hold onto the Reds 1-run lead.
Alexis Diaz took the mound for the 9th with Cincinnati still clinging to a 1-0 lead. After retiring the first two batters on seven total pitches, Diaz battled with Ben Gamel for seven pitches before picking up a strikeout to end the game and seal the series sweep for the Reds.
Key Moment of the Game
Ty France’s solo home run in the 7th inning.
Notes Worth Noting
Rhett Lowder threw 6.1 shutout innings on the day, lowering his ERA to 0.87 in his two starts. He also had more walks (4) than strikeouts (3). He also gave up a steal. This year, including the minor leagues, opponents are now 20-for-21 against him in stolen bases.
Since the All-Star break, Rhett Lowder has made five starts in Double-A, one start in Triple-A, and two starts in MLB. He’s thrown 45.1 innings in that time, allowed just 24 hits, walked 15, struck out 43, given up one home run, and has allowed three runs.
Jake Fraley and Ty France each had two hits in the game. Fraley also added a walk.
The Reds have now beaten the Astros in nine consecutive games. Time to bring them back to the NL Central.
Up Next for the Cincinnati Reds
Cincinnati Reds vs New York Mets
Friday September 6th, 7:10pm ET
TBA vs Sean Manaea (11-5, 3.35 ERA)
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