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    Matt McLain (Photo: Doug Gray)
    Photo: Doug Gray

    Reds winning streak over in a homer fueled loss in Washington

    Doug Gray 87

    Every run of the game in Washington was scored via the home run on Friday night. Cincinnati hit three homers and the Nationals hit two. But the Reds home runs were all solo shots, while the home club hit a 3-run and a 2-run home run as they picked up a 5-3 win to open up the series and put an end to Cincinnati’s winning streak.

    FinalRHE
    Cincinnati Reds (56-59)371
    Washington Nationals (57-61)570
    W: Cavalli (9-5) L: Garcia (2-3) SV: Beeter (12)
    Statcast | Box Score | Game Thread

    The game did not start out well for Cincinnati on Friday night. CJ Abrams led off the 1st with a single and then with one out an error by Elly De La Cruz put runners on the corners. Daylen Lile then homered to make it 3-0.

    The Reds got one of those runs back in the 2nd inning on an Eugenio Suarez home run. In the next inning they would get the other two runs back when Matt McLain and Elly De La Cruz went back-to-back with 1-out solo home runs.

    With it still tied up in the bottom of the 4th it was the Nationals who got back to playing longball. After Daylen Lile led off with a double, Henry Ford hit a go-ahead 2-run home run that made it 5-3.

    Cincinnati would get a 1-out double from Matt McLain and a walk by Elly De La Cruz to put two men on in the top of the 5th, but Sal Stewart grounded into a double play to end the threat. Two innings later the Reds were again in a good spot to make something happen as they loaded the bases but for the second time on the night Stewart grounded into an inning-ending double play.

    The Reds went down in order in their half of the 8th inning. The Nationals made reliever Zach McCambley work for it, but the reliever worked around two baserunners to keep the score 5-3. That brought Cincinnati to the plate in the 9th down by two and in need of a rally to keep their win streak alive. Instead they went down in order and saw their winning ways at home not carry over to the road as they dropped the first game of the series.

    Key Moment of the Game

    Harry Ford’s go-ahead home run in the 4th inning.

    Notes Worth Noting

    Matt McLain was the only Reds hitter with more than one hit. Elly De La Cruz did have a hit and two walks.

    While Cincinnati did lose, so did the Pirates. That keeps the Reds out of the basement in the division, a half-game up on Pittsburgh.

    Up Next for the Cincinnati Reds

    Cincinnati Reds vs Washington Nationals

    Saturday August 8th, 6:45pm ET

    Chase Burns (13-1, 2.35 ERA) vs Andrew Alvarez (2-3, 3.94 ERA)

    Previous Cincinnati Reds vs Washington Nationals – August 7, 2026
    Next Reds add new reliever to the bullpen, option Chase Petty to AAA
    Doug Gray
    Doug Gray has been covering Cincinnati Reds baseball since the 2006 season. Current bylines here, at Reds Minor Leagues, and Baseball America. Past bylines at The Athletic and a few other places I've forgotten and or cease to exist. Forever tired.

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    87 Responses

    1. This loss was inevitable. The main thing now is to rebound and win the series. The series is the main prize, they cant afford that. get em tomorrow.

    2. If McLain could ever recapture 2023 somewhat then the Reds offense would look completely different

      1. Not quite there yet but decent numbers over past 7 games.

        21 AB
        5 R
        5 H
        2 HR
        3 RBI
        7 K
        2 SB

        .238 BA (I think OPS over .900)

    3. Ely botched a Tailor made DP to allow the 3 run HR. He’s got to improve on the fundamentals. Makes the outstanding but has struggled with the routine lately.

      Good effort by the boys. Stewart almost had it back up the middle to drive in the tying runs in the 7th

      1. It took a bad hop on him. WLW 700 announcers both said so. I presume you are not one of them.

        1. Yep, if you aren’t a 700 WLW announcer, your opinion on Redlegnation is null and void.

        5. Watching the play live and the replay, he simply missed a ball that bounced just below belt high–I didn’t see a “bad bounce.” The 105.2 EV made the play harder than normal, but he was in good fielding position and just missed the catch. As hard as it was hit, it should have been a double play. IMO, that was the play of the game. It certainly added to the stress on Petty, already making a spot start for a bullpen day.

        6. made As I said once (too many RLN comments on same topic), major league SS should have made the play BUT it took a hop up his arm at the last minute.

          I heard WLW 700 announcers say it live. I read above that Washington announcers said something similar. Both watched it live.

      1. They commented favorably on a catch he made early in the game near the CF wall.

        2. They were wrong. That catch was as routine as possible and he still got himself turned around on it.

          As I posted last night on Bluesky when the lineup came out: Hector Rodriguez in center? This is not a serious organization.

        3. They were not wrong. Specifically, they said he got turned around but corrected himself to make the catch.

        4. “As I posted last night on Bluesky when the lineup came out: Hector Rodriguez in center? This is not a serious organization.”

          A very poorly constructed roster. Krall puts Tito between a rock and hard place often.

        5. So basically we’ve got four outfield guys that, considering how poorly our team is in the hitting department, should be playing every day. Ownly one of them can play CF and none of them can play 1B or any other infield position. They can DH of course which would mean Geno back to 3B and you know who not playing.

          If you want to talk about this not being a serious organization then the fact that KBH is even on the roster makes that point.

        6. Ok, then you were wrong in your description of what was said. I went back and listened to it. They didn’t comment favorably and specifically noted how he got crossed up on the play before making it.

      2. He looked a little turned around on a few balls, but he made a couple of nice catches on deep flyouts. Probably still getting acclimated.

      3. He made the plays, including a very good one to deep center. But, honestly, he looks uncomfortable; he’s just not smooth in his footwork or routes. Defensive concerns remain well justified.

      4. Hrod is not a CF, corner outfield for sure, He does not look over-matched at the plate though. I thought the difference in the game was SS not having his typical game at the plate, that happens.

    5. Bleday’s AVG is now down to .228.

      After his torrid May (.301/.387/.631), here are his stats:

      June: .161/.288/.323
      July: .209/.327/.419
      August: .250/.400/.438

      Only 11 HR since May, too.

      He’s off to a decent start in August, but overall, besides his one good month, he hasn’t been that great.

        1. Creeping downward, though, just like his BA.

          Terrible OBP in June (.288) and mediocre OBP in July (.327).

    6. To me.. loosing Lowe hurts more than the Greene injury.
      Having Lowe in there really lengthened the line up
      It would have been nice to have him for this series. Still don’t understand the purpose of the trade.

      1. I think that is the consensus of RLN. Krall said it was to make room for Rodriguez. Which is even more baffling. As you could of sent down Friedl. He obviously doesn’t have it this year.

        It almost feels to me Reds traded Lowe and Ferguson just to say they did something at the deadline.

        Just my opinion of course. As nothing else makes a lick of sense

        1. I’m with you, Kevin. I’m still scratching my head over those moves. If they are still “going for it”, why trade one of your hottest hitters?

      2. The only reasons I can think of to give up a productive hitter (against mostly righthanded pitching) like Lowe were that at age 31 he was asking for more money than the Reds were willing to pay, and a congestion at 1st. Base and DH. Here’s hoping the youngsters, Marte and H. Rod can provide the offense and defense the Reds need in the outfield.

      3. I also wish that they hadn’t traded Lowe. But checking his stats might make you reconsider the idea that losing him hurts more than losing Greene. It might be different if the Reds weren’t going to have to shut Burns down and Lodolo was pitching.

        1. ^^^^This ^^^^

          They never said they were going for it.
          They did say they were open to trading away expiring contracts.

          So many here were saying sell…sell….
          Then when they do it, there is an uproar.
          Sweeping the A’s does not not really change the overall forecast for the team this season.

        2. Yep, I would have liked to have kept Lowe, but the loss of Greene hurts a lot more than Lowe. A good, strong-side platoon 1B is just not as valuable as a healthy #1 starter.

        3. Many would have had no problem with selling but they would have been putrid for the last 2 months ….both offense and pitching. Possibly lose 90 games which would have been a nightmare for the front office and its “contending” team. But there was an upside in selling. You would have had 6-7 prospects – probably not starters – that you could have used to swing a bunch of improvement deals deals over the winter. So today you don’t have “ugly” but the number of tradable prospects that you have is unchanged. But the number of holes you have to fill is only increased by the loss of Lowe, Fergy, and 4-5 other expiring contract guys. And the replacement of high quality guys like Singer, Lowe, and Stephenson will require not only the trading of prospects but probably $30M+ in annual salaries and 2-3 year contracts. Bottomline: the choice to hold expiring contracts at the deadline gives you more guys to replace this winter, along with no increase or change in the number of prospects you have to use as trade bait. Choosing this path means you are going to have to trade a lot of prospects this winter in order to improve the team beyond the 2025-2026 versions. Not the way I would have done it. And you are starting 16 games behind the Brewers.

      4. It was the only trade available of any value. Not to ‘go for it’ , not to bring up Hector, not just to ‘do something’
        I probably would have kept him though.

        1. Disagree as Krall said they traded Lowe to make room for Rodriguez.

          Unless I read it wrong, or heard it wrong in regards to Krall

        2. @Kevin – What he tells the public, is not necessarily what the overall viewpoint of the front office is.

          He can’t really come out and say that we didn’t think the team was good enough to add at the deadline.

        3. The trade of Nathaniel Lowe was unnecessary. Another player could have been sent down to make room for Hector Rodriguez. A team that needs offense does not get rid of a consistent hitter like Lowe at age 31 for HRod. at age 22 whose getting acclimated to the major leagues. The current ownership and front office has no real commitment to winning baseball.

        4. The trade wasn’t necessary, but if they hadn’t made it, it’s likely that Lowe would have walked at the end of the season, leaving the Reds with nothing. So the degree to which you consider the trade to be tragic malfeasance is governed by how much confidence you had that the Reds were in serious contention.

    7. If Garcia could have held it together the outcome might have been different. The lineup just can’t string base hits together. We’re missing Steer and Lowe.

      I am encouraged by McLain lately. He needs to show something to build some promise for 2027.

      Also encouraged by Mey and McCambley outings. Kept it together against a decent lineup.

      We need to play solid and win these next two. Bullpen should be in decent shape. I’d like to see Elly take over some games like he used to. He seems like he is fading. Probably needs a day or two off.

      1. We’ve seen Mclain have good weeks before, even in this, a struggling year. We really need to see a month of stacked success, to consider if he’s turned a corner.

    8. Our struggle playing in Washington continued. Very encouraging to see MM crushing the ball the last 3-4 games. Stephenson and MM are similar in that when they get a hit, it’s likely an xtra base. Sal left his bat in Cincinnati otherwise Reds would have at least tied the game. Garcia was good, just hung a slider to Ford and he didn’t miss. Will end this one game losing streak today.

    9. I was especially happy to see Matt was still able to stick with the opposite way approach with the double after having rightfully pulled a pitch for HR earlier!

    10. Lowe was dealt to save money and to insure Hayes gets playing time at third while Steer is on the IL.Reds 2-4 hitters went 0-11 with three strikeouts and walk.The B team out of the pen did well.The Reds have 7 homers in the last two games and all have been solo shots.A’s gave them two wins but can’t expect that other teams will do that.Nats traded Garcia and Wood is out and they can’t pitch a lick per the numbers.Some say they have given up but don’t tell the Reds.Must win these next two games to take the series.Home run derby is good with men on base but not so good when they aren’t.

      1. Nope. Lowe offer only one of any value. Not to save money, not to allow Hayes to play 3rd.
        Unfortunately, Sals 2 double plays would never have gotten Lowe to the plate. Maybe he would have added another solo HR, leaving the Reds 1 run down.

        1. Disagree you are assuming Lowe was the only offer of any value.My comments are somewhat after the fact but still facts.Lowe saved the Reds money and Hayes will play more with Steer on the IL.Lets not forget Krall also said he needed a roster spot for Hector when he discussed the Lowe trade and all he had to do was send a player down if he needed a spot.

      2. Roger, they didn’t need a conspiracy that involved trading anybody in order to get Hayes more playing time: Tito can simply put him in the lineup.

        1. Krall traded Lowe not just anybody and by doing so Hayes gets more playing time.Its not a conspiracy its a fact.No Lowe,no Steer more time for Hayes. Very obvious to me. Moving Sal to third weakens the defense with I guess Tyler to first and Trevino catching.Not good cause defense matters right?Tito simply as you said can put him in the lineup and he will just more often now with fewer options now that Lowe is gone.

        2. Correlation is not causation. Lowe’s contract was expiring and they got an offer for him. They could have played Hayes as much as they wanted without trading Lowe. Geno could DH, play 3rd sometimes.

      3. How I read what I heard Krall say is that having H-Rod ready at AAA made it easier to trade Lowe.

        The Reds are pretty barren at AAA and AA level. It seems that their better prospects are primed for 2028 arrival.

        The most rookies I remember the Reds starting was in 1970. LF Carbo, SS Concepcion, and SP Simpson. OF McRae and RP Gullett not far behind. Five rookies played significant roles on that first BRM team.

    11. Seven solo home runs in two games tells you what a horrible offense the Reds have, they simply don’t get runners on base.

    12. For those tracking such things, the Prospect Promotion Incentive (PPI) is something very germane to the Reds organization the last 45 games or so. If Sal Stewart wins ROY, the Reds get an extra first round pick after Round 1. On their current trajectory and assuming not getting lucky with the draft top3 lottery draw, the Reds would be in the low teens in the first round, then get another pick in the late 30’s, and then a 2nd round pick around 50 and potentially another compensatory pick if Brady Singer declines the QO and signs a FA contract elsewhere. If it’s over $50 million, they would get another pick in the late 30’s after round 1 or before the start of the 3rd round ~ 70’s if Singer signs for under $50 million. If singer accepts the QO, then the Reds have their 4/5 starter at $23 million.

      Nonetheless, the Sal Stewart v JJ Wetherholt ROY chase is important.

      Wetherhold is sliding since July 1 and his current OPS is a mere .735.
      Wetherholt last 28 games .169/.296/.289/.585 OPS +60.

      Wetherholt .246/.350/.385/.735. OPS +109 Counting numbers 72 runs scored/ 16 HR/43 RBI/12 SB. BWAR. 4.4

      Stewart .255/.333/.479/.813 OPS + 120. 63 Runs scored 25 HR 87 RBI 12 SB and bWAR 1.7

      IMO, hitting matters a lot and counting numbers should matter a lot

      Frank Robinson rookie record is 38 HR but Sal is already 2nd at. 25. Jim Greengrass set the Reds rookie RBI record at 100 and Sal is staring that down. He didnt deliver last night with RBI, but they had a stat on how far superior Sal was situationally to the MLB average hitter of expected rate driving in runs with runners on base .

      I hope Sal makes it really hard on the voters and if he hits his current projected pace of 35 HR and 123 RBI and keeps his OPS + above 120, I like his chances. Go Sal!

    13. Why are we now calling the major league bullpen pitchers the “B team” kinda insulting if you think about it.

      These guys throw just as hard as others. Its like calling the reds “little league team” just condescending.

      But hey maybe I will start calling some on here “B” fans or complaining fans etc etc..

      Yes somewhat meant to be sarcasm with abit of truth.

      1. Might be based upon effectiveness, Kevin. Throwing hard is only part of the recipe.

      2. I think the B team reference was to the lower leverage guys in the bullpen, ie guys who come in when we don’t gave a lead.

    14. Too reliant on homers last night. Playing a better team now. Will have to put it together more tonight. Could draw a few more walks too. Pitching was not horrible. Of course, we’re in more of a pitcher’s park too.

    15. What really hurt was the Dodgers closer have up a walk off HR to Arizona 9th batter, so we dropped a full game. Similar to the 2R HR Garcia gave up, it was a hanging slider.

    16. I thought a key moment of the game was when the ump rang up Marte on ball four, several inches outside of the strike zone.

      Score was tied, we had just come back from 0-3, Hector had ripped his first ML hit, Marte had come back from 1-2 to a full count, laying off two straight breaking balls out of the zone, then lays off a third and the ump calls ball four a strike. Instead of two men on, it’s end of inning.

      Yes Marte could have challenged but Stephenson had already burned one trying to help Petty in the first. So, no, Noelvi Marte, of all Reds at the moment, probably was wise not challenging the call.

      Just a reminder how a bad strike call can both end an at bat as well as put a hitter in a hole, down 1 or 2 strikes, and impact a game.

      2. It was a big call.
        I’m amazed that today’s hitters don’t look the ball into the glove on pitches that they take. They just stare off in space, not aware of where a pitch crosses.

    17. Doug:

      If you’re reading this, is there any way to find out what kind of insurance the team had on Hunter Greene and his salary?

      1. Player contract insurance is atypical in MLB as it’s become cost prohibitive.

        1. However, it was reported the Reds did get some type of insurance on Burns’ contract.

        4. Never mind, I found it. Charlie Goldsmith quoted Nick Krall on July 18. Here’s the quote:

          “The contract extension was agreed to on Wednesday but wasn’t official until Saturday. Krall said that was because of the insurance process as the Reds took out insurance on Burns’ contract to protect them from injury. ‘That’s a part of getting a pitcher (extension) done,’ Krall said. ‘That’s what ended up taking so long.'”

          Based on that quote, there’s a good chance the Reds have a policy for Greene, too. Again, insurance for these is quite expensive and likely offsets some of the cost when a player is injured.

      2. No. And there never will be. They aren’t going to divulge that kind of information.

    18. With Greene’s injury likely putting him out for most or all of next season and the report before the trade deadline that the Reds could make Singer a QO, wouldn’t it make more sense to try to offer him a multi year extension at a rate closer to market value? What would that look like? Would 4 years, $64 million get it done? As opposed to paying $23-24 million for just next year…With Greene and Lodolo’s histories, having a durable starter locked up might be a smart move.

      1. Do we know that it’s likely he’s missing next season? I haven’t read anything that says that’s a certainty. If his surgery is TJ, I guess it is, but we don’t know that yet, do we?

    19. Makes sense to me but let’s face it the front office seems to be out to lunch more often than not. I want to know when we are going to find a SS that makes the routine plays 99 percent of the time? I am not saying he isn’t a good SS but it seems every error made comes back to bite them and when you have a team as lite of hitting as the Reds it can’t be overlooked.

      1. That was his 12th error, not a terribly alarming number for a shortstop at this point in the season. He’s made a few recently, but has overall improved considerably. Maybe he needs day off, but who takes up the hitting slack?

        2. Elly has had a solid improvement and is our best player

          Id like a few more days off and a few less errors but his oppo homers lefty and improved righty is a great year . Elly and Sal are a great 1/2

          They are fun to watch and entertaining

    21. I think the Reds are above average at the #1, #2 spots, and at least average at the#9 spots in the lineup. McLain for his struggles, actually provides value at the #9 spot I’d say with his occasional power and speed. But he definitely wouldn’t hitting 2nd. EDC and Stewart are difference makers at #1 and #2.

      But the problem is at 3-8 they’re pretty much below average at all those positions most nights throughout the year hitting wise. The core is what Nick Krall and this front office can’t figure out. It’s not easy, Seattle has struggled too I think for years with putting together a consistent Offense, maybe with the exception of last year and Raleigh having an amazing year.

      You could get away with McLain and Hayes hitting 8th, 9th if you had a really good 1-5 on a nightly basis.

      Marte had a great game the other night, and McLain hitting better, but you can’t have that inconsistency and poor hitting collectively over a long period of time from Hayes, Mclain, Marte, Friedl, Bleday in long slumps, even Stephenson earlier this year and last year awful for long stretches.

      The 3-8 hitters are all probably really 6-9 hitters on a solid club but the Reds are trying to force them into spots that so far they’ve shown they can’t produce at the level needed for a good Offense to be consistent.

    22. Sure wish one of our hottest hitters was at DH when not catching.

      T.S.:

      Last 7 Games .250 .419 .583
      Last 15 Games .294 .390 .647
      Last 30 Games .310 .384 .550

    23. Milw called up Lyon Richardson. Somehow I bet he becomes decent somehow.

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