Royals Clip Reds Late, Cincinnati Settles for Series Win

The Cincinnati Reds saw their bid for a sweep fall short Wednesday night in Kansas City, as the Royals edged out a 3-2 victory to salvage the series finale. Despite another solid performance from the Reds’ lineup, it was a few key moments that swung momentum Kansas City’s way.

Hunter Greene took the loss after going five innings, giving up two runs on seven hits and one walk while striking out three. His counterpart, Royals lefty Noah Cameron, was sharp—scattering six hits and holding the Reds to just one run over six and a third innings.

The game’s turning point came in the fourth inning, when Maikel Garcia scored from first on a deflected single to break a scoreless tie. KC tacked on two more runs via extra-base hits from John Rave and Bobby Witt Jr., the latter of whom added a sacrifice fly in the seventh for insurance.

Spencer Steer drove in both Reds runs with clutch two-out hits in the sixth and eighth innings, while catcher Tyler Stephenson continued his hot streak, going 3-for-4 and finishing the series 7-for-12. TJ Friedl also added two more hits, extending his multi-hit streak to six consecutive games.

The Reds, now 28-29, head to Chicago this weekend to open a big National League Central series against the Cubs. Southpaw Andrew Abbott (4-0, 1.77 ERA) will take the mound in Friday’s opener as Cincinnati looks to stay hot in the divisional race.