The Big Pod Machine: Reds on the road, looking at the All-Stars and an update on River Watch
Reds Beat Reporter Gordon Wittenmyer and Sports Reporter Pat Brennan discuss the current state of the Cincinnati Reds.
PHILADELPHIA − If the Philadelphia Phillies’ frontline stars don’t get you, there’s a depth of star power in their clubhouse that can get the job done.
To that point, third baseman Alec Bohm might not strike casual baseball fans as one of the faces of Philadelphia franchise, but he was still an MLB All-Star in 2024 and is part of the Phillies’ stable of star power. Bohm took the decisive swing in Saturday’s 5-1 Phillies win over the Cincinnati Reds at Citizens Bank Park before a crowd of 42,045.
Bohm broke a 1-1 tie in the sixth inning when he hit a two-run homer off Reds starter Nick Lodolo. The 400-foot blast to left-center field cleared the highest stretches of wall in one of the deepest, corners of the yard.
Lodolo allowed three runs versus the Phillies’ runs via the long ball. Edmundo Sosa also homered in the fifth inning to knot the game at one and cancel out Will Benson’s go-ahead homer (his 7th) in the top of the fifth.
Then, in the eighth inning, Kyle Schwarber punctuated the Phillies’ victory with a towering, two-run, opposite-field homer (his 27th) to left field. That made it 5-1.
Prior to Bohm’s blast, a pitching duel had broken out in South Philadelphia between Lodolo, who took the loss (5-6), and Phillies starter Ranger Suarez, who didn’t factor in the decision for his five innings of work.
Lodolo went six innings in the Reds loss as they dropped to 46-43. The NL East-leading Phillies improved to 52-37.
The teams will decide their three-game series Sunday at Citizens Bank Park (1:35 p.m.) with probable pitchers Chase Burns (0-1, 13.50 ERA) and Phillies ace Zack Wheeler (8-3, 2.27 ERA) scheduled to throw.