Sal Stewart spent the first nine innings of Sunday’s game in the dugout, sweating through a 100-degree day and watching the Cincinnati Reds grind through a tight one with the St. Louis Cardinals. Then the rookie got his chance in the 10th, and he made it count.
Stewart, who had started 103 straight games before getting his first day off of the season, came off the bench and delivered the go-ahead RBI single in the 10th inning. That hit pushed the Reds past the Cardinals, 5-3, and finished off a 6-3 road trip that stretched across three cities and three time zones.
The trip included two wins in three games in Colorado, two of three in Seattle and two of three in St. Louis.
Stewart’s latest big swing also added another layer to the Rookie of the Year conversation, even if he would never say it himself. Over the series, St. Louis rookie JJ Wetherholt went 0 for 10 with five strikeouts and three walks, while Stewart finished 4 for 9 with one strikeout and two RBI.
The Reds still had work to do after Stewart’s single gave them a 3-2 lead. With runners on second and third and two outs, St.
Louis manager Oliver Marmol intentionally walked Eugenio Suarez, who had gone 0 for 8 with six strikeouts. That brought up left-handed Nathaniel Lowe against lefty Justin Bruihl, and Lowe lined a two-run single to left for a 5-2 cushion.
“It’s just excting and I don’t care what’s really happen so far this season and or what the match-up is,” Lowe, who had his first three-hit day, told reporters after the game. “I’m just confident no matter who is out there and thankfully I got a good pitch to hit.”
The game was played in brutal heat, with the heat index reaching 112° and the field thermometer hitting 120°. Both starters took a beating and kept going.
Andrew Abbott worked six innings for Cincinnati, allowing two runs and three hits while walking four. He changed soaked uniforms three times, top and bottom, and still managed to keep the Cardinals in check when he needed to.
Kyle Leahy matched him inning for inning on the other side, also going six and giving up two runs, this time on six hits. He struck out nine, topping his previous career high of eight, which he set against the Reds last year.
St. Louis struck first in the second inning when Alec Burleson doubled off the wall, Masyn Winn singled and Jose Fermin followed with a sacrifice fly. Cincinnati answered in the third on Elly De La Cruz’s home run to left, his 18th of the season and his eighth opposite-field homer.
The Cardinals went back in front in the bottom of the third on Jose Herrera’s homer, but the Reds tied it again in the fifth when Ke’Bryan Hayes launched his third home run of the year, and his first since early May.
From there, the game settled into a long stretch of zeroes. The score stayed 2-2 from the fifth through the ninth, and after Hayes’ homer, St. Louis pitchers retired 14 of the next 15 Cincinnati hitters.
Abbott had to work through traffic early, including walks in the third and fourth innings, but Cincinnati turned key double plays behind him. One came after a sharp defensive play from Hayes, who made a stop on his knees on a scorcher hit by Herrera and started an inning-ending double play. Abbott finished with a 1-2-3 sixth and threw his 100th pitch to end the outing.
“That was balmy out there,” Francona told reporters about the furnace-like heat. “Remind me, next time it’s cold not to complain.”
He was more than happy with Abbott’s effort.
“Abbott stayed out there for six and pitched around some walks (four) and an error at first,” said Francona. “But he got a couple of double plays, a gutty performance. And then our bullpen pieced it together.”
Pierce Johnson, TeJay Antone and Brock Burke then held St. Louis scoreless for three innings, allowing just two hits.
The 10th inning got a little messy when closer Emilio Pagan warmed up but told Francona his fastball didn’t feel right. Francona turned to rookie Julian Garcia instead, and Garcia allowed a run-scoring single to Alec Burleson that cut the lead to 5-3. With the Cardinals bringing the tying runs to the plate, Garcia struck out Masyn Winn and got Jose Fermin to fly out to left for his first major league save.
“Pagan is just fine,” said Francona. “I give the kid credit.
He said he wasn’t feeling right, his fastball wasn’t coming out very good. He’s fine, he’s healthy, he is just a team guy.”
There was one more concern for Cincinnati, though, and it came with Spencer Steer. He swung and missed in the fifth inning, felt pain in his right wrist and had to leave the game.
“The concern is that he doesn’t say anything,” said Francona. “He got hit in the ribs in Seattle and didn’t say anything.
He never says anything. He didn’t fight me to come out of this game and that makes me nervous.”
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