TITLE: Reds Survive Slugfest, Take Series Finale From White Sox 9-8
Reds Survive Slugfest, Take Series Finale From White Sox 9-8
The Cincinnati Reds and Chicago White Sox treated fans to a track meet on the South Side, and when the dust settled it was Cincinnati escaping with a 9-8 win to close out their three-game series. It capped a wild stretch between these two clubs, who traded haymakers all week, and gave the Reds a much-needed answer after seeing the series swing back and forth game to game.
This one had the shape of a bullpen game gone sideways in the best way. Neither starting staff could find a groove, and the lineups made them pay for it. Cincinnati's offense, which had been shut out and stifled just days earlier in this same series, came alive at the plate and never let Chicago fully pull away, answering every White Sox push with one of their own until the Reds had just enough left in the ninth to hang on.
Sal Stewart was the unquestioned engine of the Cincinnati attack, turning in a monster night at first base worth 51.5 fantasy points, tops among everyone on the field and the reason he walked away with game MVP honors. It's the kind of performance that changes a series, and it came at a moment when the Reds badly needed someone to seize control of the game. Right behind him was catcher Tyler Stephenson, who put together a nearly identical impact with 49.5 fantasy points of his own, giving Cincinnati a middle-of-the-order one-two punch that Chicago's pitching staff simply couldn't solve. Add in Eugenio Suárez chipping in 44.0 fantasy points from the DH spot, and the Reds had three players combining for a staggering share of the offensive production in a 9-8 win. Dane Myers rounded out the contributing bats with 18.5 fantasy points in center field, giving Cincinnati length in the lineup that Chicago couldn't match.
The White Sox didn't go quietly, though, and this game was competitive from start to finish because of it. Chase Meidroth had himself a day at second base, posting 32.0 fantasy points to lead all Chicago hitters and serve as the closest thing the White Sox had to an answer for Cincinnati's top three. Randal Grichuk added 26.5 fantasy points from the DH spot, continuing to show he can still do damage in the middle of a lineup, and catcher Edgar Quero was right there with 25.5 fantasy points of his own. That trio kept Chicago within striking distance the entire game, and it's the reason this one came down to the final outs rather than getting out of hand early. But when Cincinnati's big three combined to outproduce the entire rest of the field, the difference on the scoreboard reflected it.
For Chicago, this loss stings in the context of the week. The White Sox had shown signs of finding their footing with wins over Cleveland before this series, and they'd even beaten Cincinnati earlier in the stretch. But losing the finale after leading for chunks of the game will feel like a missed opportunity, especially with the bullpen unable to hold a game that got as high-scoring as this one did. Jordan Hicks chipped in modestly out of the pen with 4.0 fantasy points, but Chicago will want more length and swing-and-miss from that group as the season rolls on if they're going to keep pace in a division where these kinds of shootouts are going to happen.
For the Reds, this is exactly the kind of response they needed. Seeing Stewart, Stephenson and Suárez all click in the same game is an encouraging sign this early in the year. Cincinnati's lineup has shown flashes of real thump, and if those three keep hitting like this, they're going to make life difficult on a lot of pitching staffs. The bullpen work behind the scenes, with Luis Mey chipping in 11.0 fantasy points, wasn't glamorous, but it got the job done in a game that demanded it.
It's early, but performances like Stewart's are the type that get noticed by anyone building a lineup on JockBroker, where a 51.5-point night like his can swing a fantasy matchup all on its own.
