PHOENIX (AP) Spencer Steer hit a three-run homer in Cincinnati’s five-run eighth inning, and the Cincinnati Reds avoided a sweep by topping the Arizona Diamondbacks 6-1 on Sunday.
Austin Hays had three hits for Cincinnati, and Noelvi Marte had two hits and scored two runs. Brady Singer struck out nine while pitching six innings of one-hit ball.
The Reds (68-63) improved to 3-3 on a nine-game trip. They also moved within 1 1/2 games of the New York Mets for the third NL wild card.
Arizona wasted a sharp performance by Zac Gallen, who struck out seven in six innings. The Diamondbacks finished with two hits.
Marte sparked the decisive sequence for the Reds with a leadoff single against Kyle Backhus (0-3). He advanced on Elly De La Cruz’s flyout and scored on Hays’ tiebreaking single off Juan Burgos.
Following a Gavin Lux single, Steer hit a 397-foot drive to left for his 16th homer. TJ Friedl tacked on a two-out RBI single that gave Cincy a 6-1 lead.
Graham Ashcraft (8-5) pitched a scoreless inning for the win.
Lourdes Gurriel Jr. hit a sacrifice fly in the first to account for Arizona’s only run. Cincinnati tied it in the sixth when Marte tripled and scored on a throwing error on Diamondbacks shortstop Geraldo Perdomo.
Steer’s homer was a big swing for Cincinnati going into a three-game series against the Dodgers.
For the eighth time this season, the Reds won the series finale while trailing 0-2. They are the only team in the majors that has not been swept this year.
Reds: RHP Hunter Greene (5-3, 2.63 ERA) starts on Monday night in his native Los Angeles against Dodgers RHP Emmet Sheehan (4-2, 4.17 ERA).
Diamondbacks: LHP Eduardo Rodriguez (5-7, 5.40 ERA) faces Brewers RHP Brandon Woodruff (4-1, 2.47 ERA) on Monday night in Milwaukee.
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| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 6 | 11 | 3 | |
| 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 1 |
| HITTERS | AB | R | H | RBI | AVG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| T. Friedl CF | 5 | 0 | 1 | 1 | .264 |
| N. Marte RF | 5 | 2 | 2 | 0 | .300 |
| E. De La Cruz SS | 5 | 0 | 1 | 0 | .275 |
| A. Hays DH | 5 | 1 | 3 | 1 | .264 |
| G. Lux LF | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | .277 |
| W. Benson PR-LF | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | .220 |
| S. Steer 1B | 4 | 1 | 2 | 3 | .236 |
| K. Hayes 3B | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .242 |
| M. McLain 2B | 3 | 1 | 1 | 0 | .221 |
| W. Banfield C | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 |
| a- M. Andujar PH | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .310 |
| J. Trevino C | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .249 |
- a-walked for Banfield in the 7th
| HITTERS | AB | R | H | RBI | AVG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| G. Perdomo SS | 3 | 1 | 1 | 0 | .290 |
| K. Marte 2B | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .290 |
| C. Carroll RF | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | .254 |
| L. Gurriel DH | 3 | 0 | 0 | 1 | .249 |
| P. Smith 1B | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .251 |
| J. McCarthy LF | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .204 |
| B. Alexander 3B | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .234 |
| A. Thomas CF | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .247 |
| J. McCann C | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .238 |
- 2B – S. Steer (18)
- 3B – N. Marte (2)
- HR – S. Steer (16)
- SH – M. McLain (3)
- RBI – T. Friedl (41), A. Hays (51), S. Steer 3 (62)
- 2-Out RBI – T. Friedl
- Runners left in scoring position, 2-Out – N. Marte, S. Steer, M. McLain 2 (2)
- 3B – G. Perdomo (4)
- SF – L. Gurriel (9)
- RBI – L. Gurriel (77)
- Runners left in scoring position, 2-Out – G. Perdomo, L. Gurriel, P. Smith, J. McCarthy
- SB – A. Hays (6), K. Hayes (12)
- SB – C. Carroll 2 (20)
- DP – (De La Cruz-Steer)
- E – E. De La Cruz (19), S. Steer (2), W. Banfield
- DP – (Perdomo-Smith)
- E – G. Perdomo (11)
| PITCHERS | IP | H | ER | BB | SO | ERA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| B. Singer | 6.0 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 9 | 4.06 |
| G. Ashcraft(W, 8-5) | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3.72 |
| T. Santillan | 1.0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2.70 |
| E. Pagan | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2.98 |
| PITCHERS | IP | H | ER | BB | SO | ERA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Z. Gallen | 6.0 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 7 | 5.13 |
| J. Morillo | 0.1 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 4.26 |
| K. Backhus(L, 0-3) | 1.0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4.22 |
| J. Burgos | 0.1 | 4 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 5.25 |
| J. Curtiss | 1.1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3.24 |
- Pitches-Strikes – B. Singer 95-59, G. Ashcraft 10-8, T. Santillan 24-13, E. Pagan 8-5
- Ground Balls-Fly Balls – B. Singer 6-3, G. Ashcraft 2-0, T. Santillan 1-0
- Batters Faced – B. Singer 24, G. Ashcraft 3, T. Santillan 4, E. Pagan 3
- Pitches-Strikes – Z. Gallen 95-61, J. Morillo 13-5, K. Backhus 6-5, J. Burgos 16-9, J. Curtiss 15-10
- Ground Balls-Fly Balls – Z. Gallen 9-1, J. Morillo 1-0, K. Backhus 1-1, J. Burgos 2-1, J. Curtiss 1-1
- Batters Faced – Z. Gallen 23, J. Morillo 4, K. Backhus 3, J. Burgos 6, J. Curtiss 5