The Cincinnati Reds pitching staff got it done on Sunday. Andrew Abbott and three relievers combined to shut out the Houston Astros while the offense took care of things on their end with JJ Bleday and Elly De La Cruz playing a big part in that.
Andrew Abbott and Kai-Wei Teng both allowed a baserunner in each of the first three innings but were able to wiggle out of jam each time and the game headed to the 4th still scoreless. Abbott then retired the side in order for the first time in the game.
Teng was not able to do the same. Elly De La Cruz singled to lead off the inning. He then took third base when Spencer Steer doubled. JJ Bleday then broke the tie with a hard grounder into the right field corner that Cam Smith bobbled for a second as he tried to pick it up and Bleday plated two runs and turned his hit into a triple. Tyler Stephenson then singled to make it 3-0. They would load the bases with one out but couldn’t cash in any more runs in the inning.
In the 5th inning Cincinnati would get another leadoff single from Elly De La Cruz – his third hit of the day – and then get walks to load the bases for Matt McLain. He walked on four pitches to bring in another run as the Reds extended their lead to four runs.
Andrew Abbott just kept rolling along as he came back to the mound and tossed another shutout frame in the 6th and had just 85 pitches. His offense came back in the bottom of the inning to add to the lead as Spencer Steer turned on a 95 MPH fastball and hit a line drive just over the wall in left field for a solo home run.
Tejay Antone took over for Abbott to start the 7th inning and he struck out two of the three hitters he faced in the scoreless inning. The last of those two strikeouts made it an even 100 strikeouts in his big league career (79.2 innings). Sam Moll followed with a 1-2-3 inning of his own in the 8th. That led to Graham Ashcraft for the 9th inning to try and seal the shutout and secure a series victory. He took care of business, quickly, needing 12 pitches to get three outs as the Reds grabbed their second win in a row. That’s what is known as a winning streak.
Key Moment of the Game
If we’re looking for a singular moment it has to be JJ Bleday’s 2-run triple in the 4th inning that put the Reds on the board and gave them the lead for good.
Notes Worth Noting
Andrew Abbott has allowed two runs over his last three starts (1.02 ERA) and he hasn’t allowed any runs in either of his last two starts.
Elly De La Cruz was the only Reds hitter with more than one hit. JJ Bleday had a triple and two walks. Blake Dunn had a double and a walk.
Reds pitchers had one walk and 10 strikeouts. Cincinnati hitters had five walks and just six strikeouts.
Up Next for the Cincinnati Reds
Washington Nationals vs Cincinnati Reds
Tuesday May 12th, 6:40pm ET
Miles Mikolas (1-3, 7.44 ERA) vs Brady Singer (2-2, 5.63 ERA)
