LDN - Sports

Schebler's 3-run HR in ninth sends Reds past Cards

[August 03, 2016] CINCINNATI -- Scott Schebler wasn't sure if his walk-off, three-run home run in the bottom of the ninth inning on Tuesday night was going to stay fair. So, after remaining near home plate to make certain, a bat flip seemed like an appropriate reaction.

"I didn't mean to pimp that way," said Schebler. "I stood there longer than I wanted to. I figured I might as well do something."

Schebler, who was recalled from Triple-A Louisville prior to the game, homered off St. Louis Cardinals' closer Seung Hwan Oh lifting Cincinnati to a wild 7-5 victory at Great American Ball Park.

"That's not like a solo homer when you're down 5-1 in the ninth," said Schebler, perhaps feeling the need to justify his celebration.

There were seven home runs hit on Tuesday, four by St. Louis.

It was the third straight loss for the Cardinals, who now trail the first-place Chicago Cubs by nine games in the National League Central. The Cubs beat the Marlins Miami 3-2 on Tuesday.

With right fielder Jay Bruce traded to the New York Mets on Monday, the Reds called up Schebler to play left and moved left fielder Adam Duvall to right. The move paid off big-time on Tuesday.

Schebler was the hero with Duvall and Tucker Barnhart also homering. Joey Votto went 4-for-4 with a walk for Cincinnati.

Jumbo Diaz (1-1) got the win. Oh (2-2) took the loss and was denied his eighth save of the season.

Cincinnati loaded the bases with no outs in the eighth, but Oh needed only six pitches to end the threat via a strikeout and 6-4-3 double play.

Oh then batted for himself with the bases loaded and two outs in the ninth and struck out, denying the Cardinals an insurance run or two.

"That's the only guy I want on the mound there," manager Mike Matheny said of his decision.

Oh gave up consecutive singles to begin the ninth. With one out, Schebler crushed his first career walk-off homer just inside the right-field foul pole, an estimated distance of 412 feet.

"That was long, loud," Reds manager Bryan Price said of Schebler's game-winner. "That was something, especially after having the bases loaded and nobody out against the same pitcher. Oh has been sensational."

Tommy Pham's first career pinch-home run put St. Louis ahead in the eighth. But, Oh, who's the Cardinals' de factor stopper with Trevor Rosenthal on the disabled list, could not hold the lead.

Reds batters worked over Cardinals starter Adam Wainwright, pushing his pitch total to 101 through five innings.

Wainwright allowed two earned runs with two walks and six strikeouts.

"I wasn't terribly sharp," Wainwright said. "When you're up and around the corners, those are foul ball pitches. They fouled off some tough pitches causing me to go deeper into counts."

Jhonny Peralta, who was reinstated from the disabled list before the game, gave Wainwright a no-decision when he delivered an RBI double in the sixth to tie the score 2-2.

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Right-hander Dan Straily started for Cincinnati and allowed two runs and five hits in six innings.

The teams traded home runs in the seventh and eighth.

Jedd Gyorko led off the seventh with a solo homer, his 15th home run of the season, against Ross Ohlendorf to put St. Louis ahead 3-2.

Duvall's 26th home run, a two-run shot in the seventh off Siegrist, put the Reds ahead 4-3.

But Brandon Moss, who came off the DL before the game, tied the score yet again with his 18th homer of the season leading off the eighth.

It was the 22nd homer allowed this season by the Reds bullpen to begin an inning.

Pham's pinch-homer made the score 5-4. It also was the Cardinals' 11th pinch-homer this season, a franchise record.

Both homers came off right-hander Blake Wood, who didn't allow one in his first 32 appearances.

A 10-pitch at-bat by Billy Hamilton resulted in a walk to begin the first inning. The Reds center fielder stole his 36th base of the season and opened the scoring on Votto's double to left-center.

The hit extended Votto's hitting streak to a career-high 16 games. He has hit safely in every game since the All-Star break.

Wainwright, who retired eight straight after Votto's double, tied the score at 1 in the third with his second home run of the season on an 0-1 pitch from Straily. It was Wainwright's eighth career homer and 50th RBI.

Barnhart's solo homer, his sixth blast of the season, off Wainwright gave Cincinnati a 2-1 lead in the fifth before the lead changed hands five times in the final four innings.

"It was a good outing overall in this park, just took a lot of pitches to get it done," said Matheny. "Sometimes you just have those days."

NOTES: Following Tuesday's game, the Cardinals placed LHP Tyler Lyons on the 15-day disabled list with a right knee injury. ... St. Louis placed SS Aledmys Diaz on the 15-day disabled list with a right thumb fracture suffered when he was hit by an Andrew Cashner pitch on Sunday. ... Cardinals SS Jhonny Peralta and RF Brandon Moss were reinstated from the DL. ... St. Louis also optioned LHP Dean Kiekhefer and OF Randal Grichuk to Triple-A Memphis. ... Reds SS Zack Cozart was scratched from the starting lineup with a bruised right ring finger. Ivan DeJesus Jr. started at SS. ... Adam Duvall moved from left to right, replacing Jay Bruce, who was traded to the New York Mets on Monday, and Scott Schebler played left after being recalled from Triple-A Louisville.

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