ATLANTA – It’s one thing for opposing lineups to beat up on the Cincinnati Reds’ bullpen and it’s another for Reds relievers to beat themselves.
Amir Garrett and Heath Hembree combined to walk three batters in the sixth inning, including a bases-loaded walk by Garrett to the Atlanta Braves' No. 8 hitter, Stephen Vogt. It turned a tie game into a one-run deficit and that’s all it took to hand the Reds a 3-2 loss in their series opener at Truist Park in front of 24,432 fans.
It was the first time Reds pitchers held an opposing team to three or fewer runs in a loss since an identical 3-2 loss to the Braves on June 25.
"It’s an uphill battle for me right now with the walks and everything," Garrett said. "When I’ve been at my best, I didn’t really think too much.
"I’m not doing that right now. I’m thinking too much about what to throw to hitters and stuff like that. I’ve never pitched like that before. I think I’ve just got to go back to not thinking, just throwing the ball over the plate, letting my pitches work and just trusting myself."
Austin Riley opened the bottom of the sixth inning with a first-pitch single against Hembree. The Braves didn’t need to put another ball in play to score the go-ahead run. Hembree walked the next batter and then was pulled after striking out his third batter.
Garrett entered to face a lefty-heavy part of the lineup. He walked his first batter, Joc Pederson, on five pitches to load the bases. Garrett had a 0-2 count against Vogt before missing the strike zone on his next four pitches.
"We’re in the playoff hunt and I can’t be going out there and walking guys, especially not walking in the winning run," Garrett said. "I’m in here every single day, working hard. That’s all I can do. Sometimes, you work and you don’t get the results you want, right? So I’ve got to just keep working."
The Braves left the bases loaded in the sixth inning with a pair of ground balls, but the damage was done. On a night that had the makings of a pitcher's duel between Sonny Gray and Drew Smyly, the Braves won the battle of the bullpens.
Gray was pulled after five innings and 89 pitches. He yielded two runs on three hits and three walks in five innings.
"Once we got to the 90 pitches, it was a tough call," Reds manager David Bell said. "I spoke with Sonny. I think he was open to going back out, for sure. He always wants that. It just felt like the right time to go to the bullpen there at 90 pitches, but Sonny is getting closer. I really believe it’s one step closer to, not only the way he’s pitching, but being able to go deeper into games."
Gray had moments where he was unhittable. His two-seam fastball darted once it reached the plate, looking like ball until it danced back over the corner of the plate. His slider had the opposite effect, sitting in the strike zone until it disappeared into the dirt.
He struck out eight batters in five innings, including five in his first trip through the lineup. Five of the eight strikeouts were on called third strikes.
"I thought his fastball command was maybe as good as it’s been all year, especially early," Bell said.
In the fourth inning, Gray issued a two-out walk to Dansby Swanson in a seven-pitch at-bat. That was the first time he had reached a three-ball count all night. Then his next pitch may have been his first bad pitch all game.
Adam Duvall, the former Reds left fielder, pummeled a first-pitch slider for a game-tying, two-run homer to left field. Atlanta hitters whiffed on the first four sliders they swung at Tuesday before Duvall's 25th home run of the season.
The Braves had Duvall for the last three years, then released him last offseason. They traded for him again in a deadline deal with the Miami Marlins at the end of July.
"Just kind of a spinny slider that stayed in the middle," Gray said.
Joey Votto opened the second inning with a double to the right-field wall, one pitch after Smyly thought he had strike three on a cutter to the outside part of the plate. Three pitches later, Aristides Aquino lifted a fastball over the center-field fence for a two-run homer.
Aquino did his customary flex as he rounded third base on his 404-foot blast and teammate Vladimir Gutierrez flexed back at him from the dugout. He has 22 hits this season, which includes seven homers, five doubles and one triple.
"I just have to be really focused," said Aquino, who snapped a 16-game homerless streak, which was the longest of his career. "Whenever the opportunity comes about, I just have to be ready for that moment."
It was the first time the Reds scored a run at Truist Park since Aug. 4, 2019 when Tucker Barnhart hit a go-ahead, three-run homer in the 10th inning. The Reds were shutout for 22 innings in Atlanta during the Wild Card Series last year, the longest scoreless streak to start the playoffs in MLB history.
The Reds didn’t produce another hit against Smyly, who struck out seven and walked two in six innings. They stranded two runners in the eighth inning when Votto was called out on strikes against Tyler Matzek, and pinch-hitter Mike Moustakas grounded into a game-ending double play when he came to the plate with two runners on base in the ninth.
After a two-week offensive tear, the Reds haven't scored more than three runs in their last three games.
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