Reds maintain off Royals 5-4 to provide Brandon Williamson first huge league win

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Brandon Williamson gave up a run within the first, one other within the second and two extra within the third Tuesday evening, and all the things may have simply come undone for the 25-year-old left-hander and the remainder of the Cincinnati Reds.

Instead, Williamson cruised via two extra innings with no hit, turned over a 5-4 result in the stingy Cincinnati bullpen, and watched a quartet of relievers enable a single hit the remainder of the best way in beating the Kansas City Royals.

“They really thrive on that,” mentioned Reds supervisor David Bell, whose membership confronted an early 1-0 deficit towards the Royals and has now received a National League-leading 22 video games in come-from-behind vogue. “It’s been really fun to see.”

Williamson (1-0) allowed 4 runs, three of them earned, on seven hits over simply 5 innings. But he left with that lead, due to a five-run second inning wherein the Reds batted via the lineup, and their bullpen survived some shaky moments to not solely hand Williamson the victory however the Royals an eighth consecutive defeat.

Daniel Duarte, introduced up from Triple-A Louisville, labored the sixth inning in his first look for the Reds after lacking 143 video games to damage a yr in the past. Ian Gibaut loaded the bases within the seventh earlier than Lucas Sims escaped the jam with strikeouts of Nick Pratto and Salvador Perez. Sims additionally dealt with the eighth earlier than Alexis Diaz took care of the ninth for his sixteenth save.

“Our bullpen is so good, you know? We’re just cruising,” mentioned Williamson, who made his huge league debut May 16. “You come in the locker room and it feels like we’ve been playing together for a long time.”

PHOTOS: Reds maintain off Royals 5-4 to provide Brandon Williamson first huge league win

Jordan Lyles (0-11) allowed all 5 Cincinnati runs on six hits and three walks over six innings for Kansas City. Bobby Witt Jr. hit a two-run homer and MJ Melendez and Matt Duffy additionally drove in runs, however the Royals couldn’t produce down the stretch.

“We lost that game,” Royals supervisor Matt Quatraro mentioned. “There were plenty of opportunities to win it. Jordan gets the loss. But it’s a team loss. I don’t look at it like we don’t have a chance to win when he’s out there. We had plenty of chances to win.”

The largest cause Lyles is winless this season has been the lengthy ball. The left-hander, who signed a two-year, $17 million deal within the offseason, had allowed a minimum of one homer in 10 of his first 13 begins and two or extra extra in seven of them.

Lyles didn’t give one up Tuesday evening. Instead, the Reds battered him with small ball.

Their five-run second inning started with prime prospect Elly De La Cruz’s stroll and ended together with his strikeout, and included seven baserunners in between them. There was a double, three singles, two extra walks and a fielder’s alternative, together with three stolen bases, an error by Duffy and a wild pitch that allowed a run to attain from third base.

Plenty of boos greeted Lyles as he walked off the mound with a 5-1 deficit.

The Royals bought a run again within the second on Duffy’s double and closed inside 5-4 on Witt’s two-run shot within the third. But their solely different probability got here within the eighth, when Gibaut loaded the bases on two walks and successful batter, and Sims shut them down.

“It’s fun because, you know, it really kind of shows the kind of character we have,” Sims mentioned. “You know, it takes all 26 of us to try to pull together and ride this thing out, and it’s fun to watch. Winning is fun.”

TRANSACTIONS

Reds: RHP Ricky Karcher was optioned to Louisville after incomes the save Monday evening. Duarte had his contract chosen from the identical membership. RHP Joel Kuhnel was designated for task.

TRAINER’S ROOM

Reds: INF Nick Senzel (proper knee) and RHP Tony Santillan (left hamstring pressure) went to Louisville to start rehab assignments. … OF Henry Ramos (proper hip pressure) got here off the injured record and was optioned to Louisville.

Royals: 1B Vinnie Pasquantino (proper shoulder instability) is awaiting the outcomes of an MRI examination taken Monday. The membership hopes to have them by Wednesday. … OF Kyle Isbel (left hamstring pressure) started a rehab task at Triple-A Omaha on Tuesday.

UP NEXT

RHP Ben Lively (3-4, 4.21 ERA) faces the Royals for the primary time within the finale of the three-game sequence. LHP Daniel Lynch (0-2, 4.41) will get the beginning for Kansas City as he seeks his first win since Aug. 1, 2022.