The Cincinnati Reds made sure the San Diego Padres’ road trip ended the way it had mostly felt: flat, frustrating, and short on answers.
Cincinnati powered its way to a 7-3 win in the rubber game of the three-game series, leaning on the long ball to bury San Diego after the Padres had opened with a quick lead.
San Diego struck first in the opening inning when Ty France launched a two-run homer off Reds starter Brandon Williamson. The Padres added to that cushion in the second after Brandon Hays doubled and Fernando Tatis Jr. singled him home for a 3-0 edge.
That lead didn’t last long.
The Reds answered with a burst of power, beginning with a three-run homer from Juan Brito after Williamson had walked Tyler Stephenson and Dane Myers singled. That blast tied the game at 3-3, and Hector Rodriguez followed with another home run to push Cincinnati in front 4-3.
Casey Mize never settled in after that. He was out after four innings, charged with five hits, four earned runs, one walk and four strikeouts. Several of the balls he allowed stayed in the middle of the plate, and a few others came close to leaving Great American Ballpark as well.
Williamson lasted into the sixth and finished with a line of three runs on seven hits and two walks, along with five strikeouts.
From there, Cincinnati kept adding on. In the sixth, the Reds extended the lead against Wandy Peralta.
JJ Bleday opened the frame with a bunt single, Myers followed with a single, and a walk to Brito loaded the bases. Matt McLain then lifted a sacrifice fly to make it 5-3.
Bleday came through again in the seventh, this time with a two-run homer off Jhony Brito. One of those runs was charged to Kyle Hart after he had given up a single to Elly De La Cruz. That made it 7-3 and left the Padres with too much ground to cover.
The Reds’ bullpen, despite its season-long issues, closed the door from there. Cincinnati used four relievers to finish off the game, and San Diego never found much against any of them.
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