Eugenio Suarez homered and drove in two runs, JJ Bleday had a pair of RBI doubles and the Cincinnati Reds earned a 6-4 victory over the visiting Atlanta Braves on Sunday afternoon.
Nick Lodolo (2-1) went 6 2/3 innings, allowing three runs on five hits, striking out four and walking four. P.J. Higgins also drove in a run for the Reds, who snapped a three-game losing streak.
Spencer Strider (3-1) suffered his first loss in his sixth start of the season, allowing four runs (three earned) on seven hits across five innings, striking out eight and walking two. Ronald Acuna Jr. homered and drove in two runs for Atlanta, which had its three-game winning streak snapped.
Acuna sent the first pitch of the game from Lodolo out for a 438-foot home run — his fifth in a four-game homer streak.
In the bottom of the first, Elly De La Cruz singled and scored on Bleday’s RBI double.
De La Cruz walked and stole second in the third inning, before advancing to third on catcher Chadwick Tromp’s throwing error. Bleday then slashed his second run-scoring double to give the Reds a 2-1 lead.
Spencer Steer singled with one out in the fourth. Will Benson doubled and Steer scored on Acuna’s fielding error in right.
Atlanta cut its deficit to 3-2 on Jorge Mateo’s fourth homer of the season — a 425-foot solo shot in the top of the fifth.
De La Cruz singled to begin the bottom of the fifth, but exited with right hamstring tightness after stopping at first. Sal Stewart singled to place runners on the corners, before Suarez’s sac fly gave the Reds a 4-2 edge.
The Braves pulled within one again in the sixth. Michael Harris II and Ozzie Albies singled, and Austin Riley’s sac fly made it 4-3.
Didier Fuentes replaced Strider in the sixth and allowed Higgins’ RBI double, pushing the Reds’ lead to 5-3.
After issuing a two-out walk to Acuna in the seventh, Lodolo was replaced by Brock Burke, who retired Harris to end the inning.
Cincinnati tacked on with Suarez’s solo homer off Dylan Dodd in the bottom of the seventh.
In the ninth, Tony Santillan allowed a one-out walk to Dominic Smith and a single to Mike Yastrzemski before Acuna’s two-out single sliced the Braves’ deficit to 6-4. Santillan was then relieved by Sam Moll, who walked Harris to load the bases. But Matt Olson grounded out to end the game and secure Moll’s first save of the year.
