Giants sweep Reds, drop Cincinnati to 62-71
The Reds were swept in a two-game set in San Francisco, falling to 1-4 in their last five and 9 games back in the NL Wild Card race.
Sal Stewart's homer wasted in the finale
Giants0-5Giants1-3The Reds were shut out 5-0 on August 24 and then lost the finale 3-1 on August 25, getting swept in San Francisco. Brady Singer gave Cincinnati a chance in the finale, going 5.2 innings with six hits, three earned runs, two walks and five strikeouts, but Sal Stewart's solo homer — 1-for-4 with an RBI — was the only run the Reds could scratch out.
Cincinnati is 1-4 in its last five games and sits 9.0 games back in the NL Wild Card, with an elimination number down to 11. The margin for error that was already thin is now essentially gone with roughly a month left to play.
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The Reds selected Michael Toglia on August 11, and less than two weeks later manager Terry Francona said Monday that Toglia will need season-ending surgery to repair a torn labrum in his right shoulder, according to Charlie Goldsmith of Fox 19 Now Cincinnati. It closes out a brief run for the first baseman before he had much chance to make an impact.
Elsewhere on the injury front, the Reds sent Graham Ashcraft to Triple-A Louisville on a rehab assignment Tuesday, the club's account confirmed. Brandon Williamson, working back from a shoulder issue, is set to make his sixth rehab start for Louisville on Thursday, per MLB.com.
Upcoming
The Reds are in San Francisco this afternoon to close the series, with Nick Lodolo (3-3, 5.04 ERA) opposing Landen Roupp (7-13, 4.34 ERA). Lodolo was rocked in his last outing against Arizona, allowing six earned runs on 10 hits over just 3.1 innings, while Roupp lasted 5.1 innings in a loss to Cleveland his last time out, walking four.
San Francisco is favored at home, and the market expects a low-scoring afternoon — a shape that fits two clubs getting shaky work from their rotations lately. For the Reds to beat the number, Lodolo has to look nothing like his last start, and the offense that's managed one run in its last two games needs to find more than a solo shot to get it done.