The Reds broke up a scoreless tie with two runs in the fifth inning to down the hated St. Louis Cardinals 2-1 in the first game of a four-game series.
The rally tipped the scales in the Reds' favor dispelling a pitcher's duel between the Cardinals' Michael Wacha and the Reds' Sonny Gray.
Gray, who allowed just one hit in his five innings, still had to pitch out of a bases loaded jam in the third inning to hold off St. Louis. Kolten Wong opened the inning with a walk. He stole second base. Gray struck out the next two batters, /Randy Arozarena and Wacha but Dexter Fowler walk. Matt Carpenter was hit by a pitch. Gray caught Paul Goldschmidt looking to end the threat.
"It was a big spot there (bases loaded third inning). I fed him a lot of breaking stuff. I took a chance with a heater. It was a two-seamer that broke back just enough to catch the corner," Gray said.
The Reds were limited to three two-out singles in the first three innings but Jose Iglesias second single of the game opened the fifth. Tucker Barnhart was his by a pitch that glanced off his shoulder and knocked his batting helmet. Gray laid down a perfect sacrifice bunt. It was his 11th sacrifice which is second in the league to Clayton Kershaw's 12. The Cardinals brought the infield in. Nick Senzel's ground ball to Wong at second scored Iglasias, who ran on contact. Josh VanMeter, who replaced Joey Votto, hit a one hopper to Goldschmidt at first. Goldschmidt threw Barnhart out at home. Eugenio Suarez' second single scored /Senzel.
Gray was taken out after the fifth inning but the short-handed Reds needed a good bunt from him and got it.
"Sonny was great and he left it all out there. He worked hard against good hitters and shut them down. He gave us everything he had. He was gassed," David Bell said. "Sonny has good self awareness. He competed in a low scoring game where every run counts."
Gray knew the importance of the bunt which set up the two runs in a key spot.
"The bunt was a big part in the game, I think, for sure," Gray said. "I got the ball off the end and sort of deadened it. When I'm pitching I know that if you can keep them from getting the sacrifice bunt down, it's huge. If they get it down, it swings the other way."
He could have come out and pitched the sixth but gave it a second thought.
"I felt ok but it was time to turn it over to the bullpen. They came in and did it," Gray said.
Robert Stephenson pitched a scoreless sixth with two strikeouts
Michael Lorenzen pitched a scoreless seventh. He walked Tommy Edman but struck out Fowler and got Carpenter on a routine fly to left. David Bell brought in Raisel Iglesias to pitch pitch to Goldschmidt, who flied out to center on the first pitch.
Iglesias walked Marcel Osuna to start the inning and bring the tying run to the plated but he struck out Paul DeJong. Yadier Molina, the boo magnet, grounded out to Suarez. Iglesias got ahead of Wong at 1-2. Wong broke his bat but the softly hit ball was out of the reach of Suarez for an RBI double. Matt Wieters flied out on the fist pitch and Iglesias earned his 24th save in 27 chances.
Votto was scratched from the line up with tightness in his lower back.
"It is something that he's had before," Bell said.
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