PHILADELPHIA − It was a funny thing, Cincinnati Reds manager Terry Francona said, that his team and the Philadelphia Phillies would begin their three-game series with identical 24-23 records.
“It’s a little different team, but we still have the same record,” Francona said, “but I’m sure they feel a little better right now about themselves.”
The two teams met for their series opener Monday, May 18, and were going in opposite directions. The Reds, after starting the season 20-11, had gone 4-13 in May and fallen to the basement of the National League Central Division. Meanwhile, the Phillies entered the series on a historic, 15-4 run under interim manager Don Mattingly. Philadelphia’s 9-19 start got now-former manager Rob Thomson fired.
By the end of the night, Francona’s observation was true of their overall season to date, as well as the game at hand, as the Phillies edged the Reds in a back-and-forth, 5-4 game at Citizens Bank Park in front of an engaged crowd of 40,065.
Cincinnati dropped to .500 at 24-24 while the Phillies continued their torrid pace on a 25-23 mark. The clubs are scheduled to play on Tuesday, May 19 (6:40 p.m. EDT) with the Reds’ Chase Burns (5-1, 1.87 ERA) expected to face the Phillies’ Jesus Luzardo (3-3, 5.07 ERA).
In the half-inning that followed the Reds taking a 4-3 lead in the eighth inning, Philadelphia second baseman Bryson Stott skied a two-run homer off Reds reliever Graham Ashcraft to retake the lead.
At the top of the inning, Spencer Steer doubled into the left field corner off fireballer Jose Alvarado with two outs, allowing Matt McLain to score from second base after he singled off Alvarado and stole second base. The go-ahead score followed Sal Stewart’s game-tying solo home run in the seventh inning.
It looked like the Reds might outlast the Phillies on a night when rookie starter Andrew Painter had one of the more promising outings of his young career. Also, slugger and Middletown-native Kyle Schwarber was sidelined from a game (illness) for the first time since the 2024 season.
In the ninth inning, Phillies closer Jhoan Duran closed out the game, ensuring the hosts survived Cincinnati’s comeback attempt.
The Enquirer will update this report.
This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Cincinnati Reds’ bullpen falters late in loss to Philadelphia Phillies