De La Cruz Homers, Steals Base as Reds Shut Out Braves 4-0
The short version
- Elly De La Cruz has 29 homers and 29 stolen bases, one shy of a 30-30 season.
- Brandon Williams allowed three hits over six scoreless innings.
- Ronald Acuña Jr. left with a left leg bruise; X-rays were negative and he is day-to-day.
- Eugenio Suárez hit his 350th career home run.
- The Braves, NL East champions, are lined up to host a wild-card series next week.
Elly De La Cruz moved within one homer and one steal of a 30-30 season while Brandon Williams pitched six scoreless innings in Atlanta.
Elly De La Cruz moved a step closer to a 30-30 season on Tuesday night, stealing his 29th base in the first inning and hitting his 29th home run in the third as the Cincinnati Reds beat the Atlanta Braves 4-0.
De La Cruz also drove in a run with a single in the seventh. Dane Myers and Eugenio Suárez added home runs for Cincinnati, with Suárez's blast marking the 350th of his career.
Brandon Williams (5-4) gave up three hits over six innings, walking none and striking out two on 68 pitches while never letting a runner reach second base. Brock Burke, Tejay Antone and Emilio Pagán each threw a scoreless inning to complete the seven-hit shutout.
Atlanta's Ronald Acuña Jr. exited in the third inning after fouling a ball off his left leg. X-rays were negative and he was listed as day-to-day, with the playoffs set to begin in about a week.
Braves rookie JR Ritchie (1-4) took the loss despite striking out a career-best eight batters and allowing one run in five innings. In Wednesday's series finale, Atlanta's Chris Sale (14-9, 2.18 ERA) is scheduled to face Cincinnati's Andrew Abbott (6-11, 4.70 ERA).
Written by the Matchday Live desk from reporting by Yahoo Sports.
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