Tyler Stephenson’s 9th inning homer propels the Reds to a win

The long ball was responsible for all of the Cincinnati Reds runs on Friday afternoon in Texas, and it was a late one from Tyler Stephenson that got the job done as they beat the Rangers in their home opener 5-3.

The Cincinnati Reds got the scoring started in the top of the 2nd inning. Eugenio Suarez picked up a 1-out single and then came in to score when Spencer Steer homered into the season in left field to make it 2-0. In the bottom of the inning the Rangers got their offense rolling with a 2-out rally. Josh Jung singled and moved to third on a double by Evan Carter. A pitch later Danny Jansen doubled in two runs, just out of the reach of a diving Steer in left field, tying the game up.

Both pitchers locked in for a bit after that, but the Reds broke through in the top of the 6th inning. Elly De La Cruz took the second pitch he saw from MacKenzie Gore and his a laser into left field that just cleared the top of the wall on a line drive to make it 3-2. Texas got a leadoff double to begin the bottom of the inning, but Sam Moll took over for Brady Singer after that and got out of the jam to hold onto the lead.

Graham Ashcraft came into the game for Cincinnati to begin the 7th inning. After picking up a strikeout to begin the frame he gave up a triple into the right field corner to Brandon Nimmo. Wyatt Langford then lined a double into right-center that was just out of the reach of a diving Dane Myers, plating the tying run. Ashcraft would come back with a strikeout and a groundout to avoid any further damage.

With the game still tied up in the 9th, Spencer Steer lined a double into center to get the inning start and put the go-ahead run in scoring position. Tyler Stephenson fell behind 0-2 but battled back for a full count. On the 8th pitch of the at-bat Stephenson went the other way for a 2-run home run to put the Reds up 5-3.

Emilio Pagan entered the game for the save opportunity in the bottom of the 9th. He would get a lineout to center and a pop up to Ke’Bryan Hayes on the front edge of the mound. But he fell behind 3-0 to Brandon Nimmo before battling back to strike him out to end the game in a victory for Cincinnati.

Key Moment of the Game

Tyler Stephenson’s 2-run home run in the top of the 9th inning to break a game that had been tied up.

Notes Worth Noting

Brady Singer threw 5.0 innings (faced one batter in the 6th, did not get him out) and gave up two runs while walking one and striking out five. He threw 87 pitches, with 58 of those being strikes.

Spencer Steer began the day with one hit in the first five games he had played in this season. He went out this afternoon and picked up a double and a home run.

Matt McLain, Eugenio Suarez, and Tyler Stephenson also had two hits in the game for Cincinnati.

Reds hitters didn’t walk and had 11 strikeouts, but they hit three more home runs than the Rangers did on the day and that made a difference.

Up Next for the Cincinnati Reds

Cincinnati Reds vs Texas Rangers

Saturday April 4th, 7:05pm ET

Rhett Lowder (0-0, 3.60 ERA) vs Kumar Rocker (season debut)