Jonathan India's seventh home run of the season put the Reds in front. The two-run shot off Baltimore Orioles starter Dean Kremer in the fourth inning broke a 2-2 forged earlier in the inning.
Tyler Mahle made the lead hold up in a 8-2 win that evened the series at a game apiece.
Mahle, the Reds starter, fell behind in the first inning. Mahle is coveted by playoff contenders in the last few days until the trading deadline at 6:00 pm on Tuesday.
He finished with six innings, allowing just the two runs on five hits. Mahle didn't walk a batter and struck out seven.
"I felt good from the start. There were a h of ground balls that got through, then my spikes got caught on the balk," Mahle said.
The Orioles got consecutive singles from Adley Rutschman, Trey Mancini and Anthony Santander, who hit a home and three hits on Friday. Santander's RBI single put Mancini on third and he scored on a balk by Mahle, who tripped out of his stretch.
The Reds reached Kremer for a run in the second inning. Kyle Farmer singled to open the frame. One out later Jake Fraley and Michael Papierski singled. The catcher drove in Farmer and sent Fraley to third. India flied to medium right and Santander used great technique to nail Fraley at the plate to end the inning.
While Mahle was dispatching 10 Oriole batters in a row, the Reds rallied in the fourth. Nick Senzel doubled with one out. Fraley dumped his second hit into left. Senzel read it off the bat and scored easily. India broke the tie with his drive to left off Kremer.
Joey Votto added his 10th home run, leading off the fifth.
Farmer's second hit chased Kremer.
Beau Sulser relieved Kremer. Senzel hit a high drive that bounced off the wall but directly into the glove of Austin Hayes. Farmer was around second and believed Hayes caught it on the fly. He reversed course and past Senzel which made the batter runner out by rule. The Orioles tagged Senzel who was already out and thought they had a freak double play. Since Farmer made it back to first, only Senzel was out.
It was a confusing play that the umpires explained in their dressing room.
Crew Chief Larry Vanover
"We have a batted ball off the wall into the fielder's glove. You have a base hit on the play. The runner that was on first he's running to third, he thinks the ball is caught. He goes back to first. They throw the ball in. Now the batter runner, who hit the ball touches first and he passes the runner who is on first, so he becomes out for passing. So there is one out on the play. The guy that was on base comes back to first and he's safe. That makes two outs in the inning so we continue to play."
It was the third base umpire Dave (Rackly) went out on the play. He had no catch on the play."
David Rackly, the third base umpire.
"I gave the safe sign and held it up even as the ball was coming in I did two or three mechanics."
Larry Vanover
"The runner on first didn't see it. It was a confusing play. I've never been involved in a play just like that. It was the first."
After the situation was sorted. Senzel was out first baseman unassisted with no hit.
Fraley belted a pitch into the right field stands. It was his second home run of the season and third hit of the game. Fraley was out of action since May 1 but collected his third hit of the game on his long ball.
India doubled, his third hit, in the sixth and he scored on a single by Brandon Drury. He needed the triple for the cycle.
"Indie is playing really well with a lot of confidence," David Bell said.
For the second time this month India needed a triple to capture the Reds' first cycle since, Eric Davis did it in 1989.
"I feel good. I feel like I did the beginning of the year," India said. "I've been hurt a lot. It's taken me a little bit to get back. I feel the same every single day no matter what, whether I get a hit or not but the results are coming. And the cycle, it happens again. I'm trying to do something. The only way to hit a triple here is over the center fielder's head or to right center and it bounces around. All those thoughts are going through my head in that at bat. I screwed myself up trying to inside out the ball. It was a wasted at bat but I'll make it up."
Reiver Sanmartin pitched a scoreless inning. Ross Detwiler pitched a scoreless eighth. Ryan Hendrix came on in the ninth and closed it out with a scoreless inning.
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