LDN - Sports

Bases-loaded walk in 9th lifts Reds past Braves

[June 14, 2016] ATLANTA -- The Cincinnati Reds continued their rebound from an 11-game losing streak by adding to the Atlanta Braves' miseries.

Tyler Holt drew a bases-loaded walk with two outs in the ninth inning to force in the decisive run as the Reds improved to 10-6 since the losing skid with a 9-8 victory over the Braves on Monday night.

Joey Votto opened the winning rally with a bloop double off Braves closer Arodys Vizcaino (1-2) and three walks, the first being intentional.

"It ended up turning into somewhat of a slugfest, though really the catalyst for a lot of the scoring opportunities, at least for us, were the base(s) on balls," Reds manager Bryan Price said.

"Just some really odd baseball tonight. If you're a baseball purist, I don't think that's one you are going to save on a CD and play it over and over again."

The Reds (25-39) are thankful for the win, though.

With Billy Hamilton out with a concussion, Tyler Holt is filling in as the center fielder and came through in the clutch, taking a 3-1 pitch from Vizcaino to draw the decisive walk.

"I was very confident he wouldn't expand the strike zone," Price said of Holt.

The loss dropped the Braves (18-45) to 7-26 at home, including 1-8 in one-run decisions.

The Braves walked eight batters against the Reds and have given up 30 runs on 38 hits and 17 walks in losing their last three games.

"We kept fighting back," Braves interim manager Brian Snitker said. "There were just too many walks early. ... I looked up and there were six runs on just three hits."

Ross Ohlendorf (5-5) got the victory for the Reds despite giving up the tying run in the eighth inning and Tony Cingrani pitched a perfect ninth for his seventh save.

Adam Duvall homered and drove in three runs for the Reds, while Votto had two hits and two walks, and Jay Bruce contributed a triple and a pair of RBIs.

Freddie Freeman had a homer and a double among his three hits for the Braves, driving in three runs.

Atlanta tied it in the eighth on a leadoff homer by Adonis Garcia, but Reds reliever Ross Ohlendorf kept the Braves from taking the lead after loading the bases with one out. Mallex Smith lined out and Ender Inciarte grounded out to keep the game tied.

Braves reliever Ryan Weber surrendered hits to three of the first four batters he faced as the Reds went ahead in the sixth inning with the third of four lead changes in the game.

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Pinch-hitter Kyle Waldrop, who is 3-for-6, had his first major league RBI with a single and the second run scored on a wild pitch by Weber.

"It was a big at-bat for Kyle," said Price.

Braves starter Aaron Blair had been in line for his first major league victory despite giving up six runs in five innings on four hits and four walks.

"He has to do a better job of starting the game like he finished," Snitker said of Blair allowing just one base runner in his final two innings.

Freeman put the Braves ahead 7-6 in the fifth with a two-run homer off Reds reliever JC Ramirez. It was the 10th home run of the season for Freeman.

Duvall's 18th homer, which hit high off the left-field foul pole, capped a three-run first inning and the Reds added three more runs in the third on only one hit after the Braves had tied the game.

Bruce, who had an RBI triple in the first, drew a bases-loaded walk and Duvall had one of two sacrifice flies in the inning for his third RBI of the game.

The Braves got back to within a run in the bottom of the third inning, scoring twice thanks to a two-out error by Reds first baseman Votto. A double by Garcia drove in the second run.

Rookie right-hander Daniel Wright made it through only three innings for the Reds in his second major league start, giving up five runs (three earned). He allowed six hits and walked one.

NOTES: Braves RHP Julio Teheran (2-6, 2.85 ERA) will square off against Reds LHP Brandon Finnegan (2-4, 3.77) in the second contest of the four-game series Tuesday. ... The Braves placed LHP Eric O'Flaherty (right knee strain) on the disabled list. He made his 27th relief appearance Saturday, allowing three runs on four hits in two innings against the Chicago Cubs. ... RHP Ryan Weber was recalled from Triple-A Gwinnett to take O'Flaherty's spot in the bullpen. ... The Reds came to terms on a reported $6.2 million deal with 3B Nick Senzel, the No. 2 overall pick in the 2016 draft. He batted .352 with eight homers and 59 RBIs in 57 games as a junior at the University of Tennessee. ... Braves RHP Shae Simmons, who is coming back from Tommy John surgery, was scratched from a scheduled rehab appearance with Double-A Mississippi over the weekend. He is shut down while being re-evaluated.

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