Espinal has 3 RBIS, Cruz pitches out of jam and Reds beat Phillies
CINCINNATI — Santiago Espinal had three RBIS, reliever Fernando Cruz pitched out a jam in the seventh inning and the Cincinnati Reds held on for a 7-4 win over the Philadelphia Phillies on Wednesday night.
Will Benson had a solo homer in the third inning. Espinal singled home two as part of a four-run sixth and drove in another with a sacrifice fly in the seventh. That came on the heels of a 3-for-4 night for Espinal on Tuesday that included his first homer as a Red.
Cincinnati starter Nick Lodolo went five innings, allowing three runs and six hits while striking out four and walking three.
For the second straight night, Cruz came in with one out and stranded Phillies runners on second and third. Cruz struck out Edmundo Sosa with a splitter and induced a fly ball to right from pinch-hitter Brandon Marsh that Benson tracked down at the wall.
“He just wants the ball. He wants to do his part,” Reds manager David Bell said of the 34-year-old right-hander. “He comes in fearless and believing in himself.”
Said Cruz: “As a high-performance athlete, you want those situations. Those are the ones you want. I’m having a lot of fun doing it.”
Elly De La Cruz had three hits and three stolen bases, increasing his major league-leading total to 15. In the eighth, he singled, stole second and third and scored on a fly ball by Spencer Steer.
“The way he’s handling it is everything,” Bell said. “He continues to work. He understands the situation. He’s not just aimlessly running out there. He understands the pitchers who are on the mound, what’s he’s up against and then ability just taking over.”
The loss wasted another excellent outing by Philadelphia starter Spencer Turnbull, who allowed a run and three hits through five innings with eight strikeouts in 89 pitches.
“He was going back out (for the sixth) but (the Reds) made two pitching changes in that inning. It took about 25 minutes. That’s why we made the change,” Phillies manager Rob Thomson said. “If he was at 50 pitches, we’d have sent him back out, but once you’re in that 90 range, it was too long.”
Alec Bohm had four hits and two RBIS for the Phillies, who have lost two in a row to the Reds after taking the first game of the series on Monday.