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Mariners 8 Reds 4
The Mariners punished Lyon Richardson, hitting three long balls, plating five runs in the 4th inning and never looking back in an 8-4 win over the Reds Wednesday night at GABP. The Mariners salvage the final game of three game series.
The Reds finish "The Stretch"at 9-8. All things considered, a minor miracle. They finish 13-2 vs the AL West and drop to 73-69 overall.
The Cubs, Diamondbacks and Marlins each won. The Reds and Diamondbacks are now a half game back of the Marlins for the 3rd Wild Card.
Next: Off day Thursday and then 20 games remain, 17 vs teams with a losing record.
Early action: The Reds scored first when TJ Friedl triple in the 1st inning and scored on a Spencer Steer chopper that bounded over the head of SS JP Crawford after the Mariners had opted to pull the infield in.
Richardson: 4.2 IN, 7 H, 7 R, 4 BB, 3 K, 3 HR, 95 pitches. He was tattooed for two homers and five runs in the 4th inning. JP Crawford broke things open with a 3-run clout that pushed the Mariners lead from 3-1 to 6-1. Cal Raleigh hit a laser for a solo homer to make it 7-1. Richardson faced four batters in the 3rd inning and managed to throw just eight pitches.
Offense: Eight Reds contributed a total of 10 hits. But they missed chances, again. They struck out 13 times....Fraley 3, Steer 3, CES 2.
Ouch (1): Will Benson double and stole 3rd in the 3rd, but Jake Fraley and Friedl each struck out and Elly De La Cruz grounded out.
Ouch (2) Trailing 7-3 in the 6th, the Reds loaded the bases with one out on three consecutive singles (CES-Stephenson-Marte). But Benson struck out and Fraley grounded out.
Big night: Benson, just 5 for his previous 35, homered and doubled twice. He added a SB and 2 R. It's his first career game with three extra base hits.
Elly things: H-SB-R in the 6th inning.
Friedl: 3B-R-BB-SF RBI
Torrid Tyler: Stephenson had another hit. He entered 11 for his previous 21 (.524) and hitting .386 over his previous 18 games.
Geno, Geno, Geno: Eugenio Suarez collected two hits, including career double No. 200, and scored a run.
Official scoring: Raleigh reached on a ball that rolled under the glove of a charging De La Cruz. It was ruled a hit. Where has the pride gone in official scoring? It's no longer comical. It is embarrassing what passes as official scoring in MLB.
How the Reds scored:
1st Steer RBI 1B, 1-0 Reds
5th Friedl Sac Fly, 7-2 Mariners
6th CES RBI 1B, 7-3 Mariners
9th Benson solo HR, 8-4 Mariners