Austin Hays was the man of the minute with a bases-loaded first-pitch single in the 10th inning to give the Reds a 3-2 walk-off victory.
But the real game-long stars were starting pitcher Andrew Abbott and catcher Jose Trevino as the Reds ended Milwaukee’s 14-game winning streak.
And it prevented the Brewers from sweeping the Reds and ending their streak of not getting swept this season — the 41st straight series they haven’t been swept.
Abbott, the Reds’ acknowledged stopper, held the high-powered Brewers offense to no runs and four hits over seven near-flawless innings.
It was what the Reds needed the most after blowing an eight-run lead Friday night and losing in 11 innings Saturday.
Credit: AP
Credit: AP
“We were leaving the stadium last night in kind of a bad mood and I was like, ‘OK, Abbott’s going to pitch,’ you’re looking for something to pick up your spirits and that’ll do it,” Reds manager Tito Francona told reporters after the game.
The Reds took a 1-0 lead into the ninth inning when it looked again as if the Brewers were going to pull some more fairy dust out of their back pockets.
Closer Emilio Pagan walked the first batter and Brewers catcher William Contreras crushed a home run to give the Brewers a 2-1 lead.
Another crushing defeat? Not this time.
The Reds tied it in the bottom of the ninth, 2-2, on Trevino’s run-scoring single when the Reds were two outs away from a 2-1 defeat.
Credit: AP
Credit: AP
Graham Ashcraft, with Trevino’s help, pitched a scoreless 10th and the Reds walked it off in the bottom of the 10th.
And what did Trevino do besides tying the game in the ninth? His sacrifice fly that was nearly a three-run homer gave the Reds a 1-0 lead in the seventh after Milwaukee left-hander Jose Quintana pitched six scoreless innings.
Quintana was 2-0 for his career against the Reds and Milwaukee was 6-0 in the six games he started against the Reds.
Trevino caught 11 innings Saturday night and had to come back and catch Sunday afternoon because Tyler Stephenson has a sore thumb.
What Trevino did on defense was even better than his bat work.
With the Reds clinging to the 1-0 lead, Wright State University product Tyler Black walked with one out. He tried to steal but Trevino wiped him out on a pitch-out.
In the 10th, the Brewers tried to bunt ghost runner Andrew Vaughn to third. Trevino pounced lion-like on the Blake Perkins bunt and gunned down Vaughn at third. And the Brewers didn’t score.
“That was his best throw of the year, I think, in a crucial time,” said Francona. “It was extra innings last night and he’s catching today and he helped us offensively also. He has been doing that all year.”
Credit: AP
Credit: AP
To Trevino, it was child’s play. Asked about when he decided to throw to third on the bunt, Trevino said, “Before the hitter comes to the plate.”
And about playing 10 innings after playing 11 the night before, Trevino said, “I just think that 30 years from now I’ll be wishing I could do this all over again. I’m living for the moment and knowing 30 years from now I’ll be wishing I could squat back there again.”
The 10th began with TJ Friedl, 0 for 5, on second base as the ghost runner. Spencer Steer bunted him to third. Milwaukee manager Pat Murphy decided to intentionally walk Elly De La Cruz and Will Benson, just recalled from Louisville.
That filled the bases with one out, setting up a force play at any base. Instead, Hays picked on Grant Anderson’s first pitch and rocketed the game-ending hit into left field.
“The infield was in so I just wanted to get a good pitch to hit and hit it hard, that’s it,” said Hays.
Asked about his emotions in the ninth and tenth innings, Francona said, “You don’t want to know. Whatever years I have left, it took some off.
“There is something to be said for keeping playing,” he added. “It wasn’t perfect, but we kept playing. And we beat a real good team.”
Or as Trevino put it, “After two heartbreak losses — we were in those games — to get this one was big. It shows a lot about us as a team. We could easily have crumbled when Contreras hit that homer, pack it in, if we wanted.
Credit: AP
Credit: AP
“We didn’t,” he added. “There is just something about this team that’s real gritty, really gritty.”
Abbott retired 12 of the first 13 Brewers before giving up a pair of one-out singles in the fifth. It was his only problem, but no problem. He coaxed a pop-up from Joey Ortiz and made an incredible play on a grounder up the first base line to retire Brandon Lockridge.
He gave up a one-out single to Vaughn in the seventh. In the losses Friday and Saturday, the Reds botched double plays that led to runs. This time they turned a 6-4-3 inning-ending double play. That ended Abbott’s day after 92 pitches.
“I know they are a good-hitting team so I kept the ball away and kept the leadoff guy from getting on base as much as possible,” said Abbott, who did not permit a leadoff hitter to reach base.”
And Trevino had the final say on Abbott.
“He’s an All-Star, so he is going to go out there and do All-Star things.”
NEXT GAME
Who: Cincinnati at Angels
When: 9:30 p.m.
TV: FS1/FanDuel Sports
Radio: 1410-AM, 700-AM
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