The Reds hit five home runs, led by Adam Duvall’s first two-homer game, and outslugged the Rockies, 11-8, in the series opener Monday at Coors Field.
The Reds took the lead in a five-run fourth inning and chased Rockies starter Chad Bettis. Duvall hit a two-run homer into the Colorado bullpen, Joey Votto added a two-run ground-rule double, and Brandon Phillips capped off the scoring with a single off reliever Gonzalez Germen.
“No lead is safe in this park, obviously, and today’s game pretty much proved that,” Reds shortstop Zack Cozart said.
“I felt today I got myself in a lot of bad counts,” Bettis said. “I threw a lot of fastballs in fastball counts, and they hit fastballs. This is a start that I have to wash away and move on.”
Colorado couldn’t stop the bleeding late either, as the Reds hit home runs against three relievers. Other home runs led off innings — Cozart on Bettis’ first pitch, Votto in the seventh, Eugenio Suarez in the eighth and Duvall in the ninth.
Cincinnati starter Dan Straily gave up four runs in the third on a Gerardo Parra single and Daniel Descalso’s three-run double. But in his final three frames, Straily struck out two and needed just 36 pitches. It was Straily’s nine-pitch plate appearance vs. Bettis with two outs in the fourth that also kept the big rally alive when he walked.
“It turned out to be a game-changer for us,” Straily said. “I didn’t really think I had much chance to put a ball in play hard and then statistically speaking, I didn’t. I was just trying to work a walk and it worked out in my favor.”
The Rockies mounted a comeback in the ninth, beginning with Carlos Gonzalez’s home run in a third straight game. Descalso added an RBI single, but the game ended with Nolan Arenado representing the tying run on deck, waiting to pinch-hit.
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