Reds sweep the Giants in split squad action with dominant pitching

The San Francisco Giants entered Friday with just three losses in 19 games played this spring. The Cincinnati Reds handed them two more on Friday night as they would hold the Giants to just one run between the two games in a dominant showing of pitching as they moved to 11-9 with the two victories.

Reds at Giants: The Highlights

The Reds didn’t waste much time getting on the board in this one. Matt McLain hit a 1-out triple and then the next two batters walked on four pitches each to load the bases. JJ Bleday then cashed in on his opportunity and singled in two runs.

Chase Burns threw two shutout innings, giving up just a single. He struck out two batters and threw 24 pitches with 17 strikes, but his day was complete after that. That was planned by the Reds, with Mark Sheldon of Reds.com reporting that Burns had been told yesterday he was only being asked for two innings because he’s thrown a lot of pitches this spring.

Cincinnati would add to their lead in the top of the 5th inning when Will Benson walked with one out and then came around to score when Nathaniel Lowe doubled two pitches later. San Francisco would cost themselves a run in the next inning when Garrett Hampson reached on an error and then scored on the next pitch when prospect Tyson Lewis doubled to the opposite field to make it a 4-0 game.

The Giants would get on the board in the bottom of the 7th inning against Davis Daniel thanks to a 2-out rally. Will Brennan would pick up a single into right field and then come in to score on a line drive double into right-center by Jerar Encarnacion. Cincinnati got that run back almost immediately as Carlos Sanchez singled to lead off the top of the 8th and then Rafhlmil Torres triples on the first pitch he saw to bring in the run. Two pitches after that another run came in on a single by Hansel Jimenez as the Reds extended the lead to 6-1.

On a day in which the Reds bullpen had been outstanding, giving up just one run in 6.0 innings of relief and no walks, Cincinnati took a 5-run lead into the 9th inning with Brandon Leibrandt returning to the mound for his second inning of the night. He would work around a leadoff single to seal a 6-1 win.

You can see the box score for this game here.

Giants at Reds: The Highlights

Cincinnati did something in the 1st inning that fans hope they’ll see a lot of in 2026. Elly De La Cruz drew a walk, stole second base, and then came in to score on an RBI single by Sal Stewart to put the Reds up 1-0.

After working around a 2-out walk in the top of the 1st inning, Brady Singer found himself in a lot more trouble in the 2nd. Bryce Eldridge led off with a double and then Casey Schmitt followed up with a single. Singer then walked Daniel Susac to load the bases. The Reds righty wiggled his way out of that jam with a fly out, a strikeout, and a groundout to strand the bases loaded and hold onto the lead.

There was almost no offense after that point. The Reds only hit in the game was Stewart’s single in the 1st. San Francisco only had two hits after the 2nd inning and both were singles. Pierce Johnson, Graham Ashcraft, Connor Phillips, Zach Maxwell, and Hunter Parks all came out of the bullpen to fire a shutout inning as Cincinnati held on for a 1-0 win.

You can see the box score for this game here.

News and Notes

Elly De La Cruz picked up both his first walk and his first stolen base of the spring in the 1st inning of the game in Goodyear. He then picked up his second walk and second and third stolen bases in the 6th inning.

Sal Stewart went 1-1 with two walks, an RBI, and two stolen bases in the 1-0 win in Goodyear.

The only hitter with multiple hits in the 6-1 win in Scottsdale was #4 prospect Tyson Lewis. He went 2-3 with a double and an RBI. Will Benson only had one hit, but he walked in his other two plate appearances and scored two runs.

Relievers Lyon Richardson, Hagen Danner, Luis Mey, and Brandon Leibrant all had shutout appearances out of the bullpen in the 6-1 win over San Francisco.

Prior to the games on Friday the Reds made one roster cut, sending Yunior Marte back to minor league camp. He had allowed five runs on nine hits and two walks in 6.0 innings this spring while striking out 11 of the 29 batters he had faced.

Saturday the Reds are back to just one game on their schedule. They will be at home for an afternoon contest as they host the Texas Rangers. Rhett Lowder will start for Cincinnati. First pitch is scheduled for 4:05pm ET. It will be a radio only broadcast. The relievers scheduled to pitch in the game are: Emilio Pagan, Tony Santillan, Sam Moll, and Tejay Antone.