Spencer Arrighetti had an amazing August for the Houston Astros, but he didn’t have that pitching magic carry over on Wednesday night. The Cincinnati Reds scored nine runs off Arrighetti in 2/3 innings of work en route to a 12-5 win.
Arrighetti earned American League Rookie of the Month honors on Tuesday. In 32 1/3 innings, Arrighetti, 24, had an incredible 1.95 ERA with 47 strikeouts. Arrighetti almost pitched a no-hitter on Aug. 28, keeping the vaunted Philadelphia Phillies’ offense hitless for seven innings. He had turned his season totally around in the past couple of months. Wednesday’s start at Great American Ball Park brought up memories of his early-season troubles.
Houston Astros No Match for Reds
After the Houston Astros were retired in order in the first, Cincinnati sent 10 men to the plate. Arrighetti’s pitches didn’t have their usual bite, leaving them over the plate for some Reds batting practice. Arrighetti (7-12) allowed nine earned runs, six hits, three walks, and no strikeouts.
Taylor Scott, Forrest Whitley, Kaleb Ort, Hector Neris, and Ryan Pressly did their best to keep the Astros in the game. But the offense was not able to put hits together.
436 foot leadoff 💣@JonathanIndia pic.twitter.com/DqEQRkfEJe
— Cincinnati Reds (@Reds) September 4, 2024
Nick Martinez (7-6) went 5 2/3 innings to pick up the win for Cincinnati. Brent Suter pitched 3 1/3 innings in relief for his first save.
Jonathan India opened the scoring for the Reds with a solo home run. TJ Friedl doubled to center field, scoring Elly De La Cruz from second base. Ty France, who has been feasting at the plate off Houston Astros pitching, singled to drive in Friedl.
9-run first inning‼️ pic.twitter.com/oZXL1fOPAz
— Cincinnati Reds (@Reds) September 4, 2024
Amed Rosario followed with a two-run double, making it 5-0 Cincinnati. De La Cruz connected for a two-run single for a 7-0 Reds lead. Tyler Stephenson’s two-run single made it 9-0 Cincinnati and, well, the ballgame was pretty much over.
Ben Gamel’s RBI single got the Houston Astros on the board in the second inning. Zach Dezenzo had a two-run single in the sixth, while Chas McCormick added an RBI single. Jon Singleton hit a solo home run, his 13th this season, in the seventh inning.
The Reds simply have owned the Houston Astros over the past few years. Like for nine years, OK. These teams don’t play that much anymore as they did when the Astros were in the National League. Still, the fact that Houston hasn’t beaten Cincinnati at least once recently is amazing.
Well, the Astros will do their best to get out of Cincinnati with one win. The three-game series wraps up on Thursday as Cincinnati sends rookie right-hander Rhett Lowder (0-1, 2.25 ERA) to the mound against Houston right-hander Hunter Brown (11-7, 3.55).
Bregman Back, Tucker Works Out
Alex Bregman did return to the starting lineup for the Houston Astros. Yet outfielder Kyle Tucker continues to work hard toward returning to the active roster. Tucker’s injury was more than just a shin contusion. It turns out Tucker suffered a fractured leg back in June.
Tucker ran the bases ahead of Wednesday’s loss and even took some swings in the batting cage. “He’s really, really close,” Astros manager Joe Espada said, The Associated Press reported. “It will be the next few days.”
Besides Arrighetti getting his flowers for a solid August, Astros closer Josh Hader was named American League Reliever of the Month, MLB.com reported. In 13 1/3 innings, Hader put together a nifty 0.68 ERA, allowing one earned run. He kept opponents’ bats in check as they could only muster a .071 batting average.
It marked Hader’s first time earning this reliever honor in the AL. He’d been with the Milwaukee Brewers and San Diego Padres of the National League before signing his big offseason contract with Houston. Hader has six Reliever of the Month awards from his NL days.
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