A four-run seventh-inning rally sparked by Nick Castellanos and Eugenio Suarez home runs led the Cincinnati Reds to a 6-2 victory over the Kansas City Royals at Kauffman Stadium.
| Final | R | H | E |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cincinnati Reds (44-40) | 6 | 6 | 0 |
| Kansas City Royals (35-49) | 2 | 7 | 1 |
| W: Gutierrez (4-3) L: Minor (6-7) | |||
| Statcast | Box Score | Game Thread | |||
The Reds stared down two of their statistical nemeses this season — facing left-handed starters and road games — to rally late. What we saw tonight is a good team that was able to take advantage of a weaker team and do what was necessary to win. That is something we have not seen a whole lot of in recent years from these Cincinnati Reds — mainly because they’ve always been the weaker team that was victimized this way by better teams.
With their fifth consecutive win and Milwaukee’s 4-2 loss to the Mets, second-place Cincinnati pulled within six games of the first-place Brew Crew (five behind in the loss column).
The Offense
In the second inning, Tyler Stephenson led off with a double, and Joey Votto followed with a single that moved Stephenson to third. Suarez hit into a double play which scored Stephenson to give Cincinnati a 1-0 lead.
With his team down 2-1 in the top of the seventh, Castellanos led off the inning and did something about it …
Blast-ellanos gives us some fireworks! ? pic.twitter.com/hQhfunT3Df
— Bally Sports Cincinnati (@BallySportsCIN) July 6, 2021
Very interestingly, Statcast listed the xBA (expected batting average) for the home run at .930. Just wondering where in MLB that is not a hit if it was clearly out of the most spacious park in the game.
Royals starter Mike Minor followed by walking Stephenson and Votto back to back, ending the lefthander’s evening. Then, against reliever Kyle Zimmer, Suarez obliterated one …
431 feet of good vibes. pic.twitter.com/1TRdkQjc7g
— Cincinnati Reds (@Reds) July 6, 2021
… with 111 mph exit velocity for a three-run, go-ahead shot — paving the way for yet another come-from-behind victory. (And Statcast got this one right — 1.000 xBA.) 😉
Later in the game, Suarez smoked one at 102 mph off the bat that turned into a double play. The quality of his contact is showing flashes of becoming more consistently strong.
As in the series against the Cubs, Cincinnati hits were at a premium. The Reds scored six runs on only six hits. No Reds batter had more than one hit.
The Pitching
Starter Vladimir Gutierrez had a nice game, allowing only five hits, two walks and two runs over six innings.
That’s nasty!
Vladimir Gutierrez with 6 K in 3.2 IP. pic.twitter.com/hM5Ex4Jxc6
— Bally Sports Cincinnati (@BallySportsCIN) July 6, 2021
He showed definite signs of tiring in the sixth inning, but got out of a runners-on-second-and-third-and-one-out situation with no additional damage.
Ryan Hendrix, Josh Osich and Sean Doolittle (now with a pitch other than just a fastball???) finished things up, allowing the primary late-inning relievers to rest for at least a day.
Notes Worth Noting
The win was Cincinnati’s fifth consecutive come-from-behind win for the first time since May 1995. We all know they never give up, and the numbers show that.
Up Next for the Cincinnati Reds
Cincinnati Reds at Kansas City Royals
Tuesday, July 6, 8:10 p.m. ET
Luis Castillo (3-10, 5.08 ERA) vs TBA
