Dateline: Cincinnati
The Reds have bumbled through the NL Central this season but Friday (072326), Rhett Lowder and Eugenio Suarez combined to clip the St Louis Cardinals wings in a 4-2 triumph.
Lowder displayed the talent that has eluded him this season as he handled the Cardinals with five innings of one-hit baseball.
Tyler Stephenson, who has been a .352 hitter in his last 28 games, hit his seventh double in that span to put the Reds into the lead.
The Reds are 2-4 against the Cardinals this season and had the lead at some point in each of them.
Lowder on the other hand was breezing. He retired the Cardinals lineup in order the first time through with three strikeouts. He walked JJ Wetherholt to start the fourth but got league leader in RBI, Jordan Walker, to bounce into a double play before striking out Alec Burleson for his fourth whiff.
The Cards solved Lowder in the fifth though. He hit All-Star, Ivan Herrera, with a pitch, leading off the fifth. Herrera stole second and advanced to third on a fly out. Masyn Winn grounded out softly to second base. Lowder walked Nathan Church with two outs. Blaze Jordan doubled to left to put St. Louis in the lead.
Lowder finished with five innings. He allowed two runs on one hit, two walks and a hit batter. He struck out four.
Caleb Ferguson got two outs in a scoreless sixth and turned the ball over to Julian Garcia. He struck out Herrera.
Sal Stewart singled off George Soriano in the seventh. Suarez blasted his 14th home run of the season 413 feet into the left field stands to give the Reds the lead.
Brock Burke made short work of the Cardinals in his league leading 53rd appearance.
Tejay Antone gave up a one-out double to Jimmy Crooks but struck out Wetherholt and retired Walker on a weak pop to second.
Elly De La Cruz walked against Luis Gastelum to start the ninth. De La Cruz stole second and took third on a wild pitch. Stewart singled to drive in his 75th run of the season, two behind Walker, to give the Reds some breathing room.
Emilio Pagan handled the three, four and five hitters, striking out Herrera and Lars Nootbaar to finish the game.
It is Pagan’s 10th save and third since the All-Star break.
Garcia got credit for his first career win at the age of 31, after toiling eight seasons in the minor leagues, one season in foreign professional baseball and two seasons of independent baseball.
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