Reds beat Padres 7-3, still 6.5 back in wild card
The Reds closed out the Padres 7-3 on Juan Brito's first career homer, but at 6.5 games back with an elimination number of 3, the win didn't move them any closer to a wild card spot.
Brito's first homer closes out San Diego
The Reds beat San Diego 7-3 on September 2 at Great American Ball Park to take the series 2-1 after dropping the opener 0-5 on August 31. JJ Bleday went 3-for-4 with a double and a home run and 2 RBI, Dane Myers added a 3-for-4 night, and Brandon Williamson worked 5.1 innings, allowing 3 earned runs on 7 hits with 5 strikeouts.
Padres0-5Padres4-3Padres7-3Juan Brito hit his first career home run to tie the game at 3 in the seventh, per Cincinnati writer ctrent, and finished 1-for-3 with 3 RBI and a stolen base. Héctor Rodríguez also went deep, going 1-for-5 with a home run and an RBI. The series had opened with the 0-5 shutout loss on August 31 before the Reds won back-to-back, 4-3 on September 1 and 7-3 on September 2.
Six and a half back with an elimination number of 3
At 67-73, the Reds sit 6.5 games behind the final NL Wild Card spot with an elimination number of 3 — any combination of 3 Reds losses and wins by the clubs above them ends the season. Going 3-2 in their last 5, capped by the finale over San Diego, kept the deficit from growing, but it did not close it.
| NL Wild Card | W | L | Pct | GB |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 Phillies | 79 | 61 | .564 | +5.5 |
 Cubs | 79 | 62 | .560 | +5.0 |
 Diamondbacks | 74 | 67 | .525 | — |
| Padres | 73 | 67 | .521 | 0.5 |
 Marlins | 71 | 70 | .504 | 3.0 |
 Cardinals | 70 | 71 | .496 | 4.0 |
 Pirates | 69 | 72 | .489 | 5.0 |
 Reds | 67 | 73 | .479 | 6.5 |
The clubs ahead of them are tighter to the field than Cincinnati is to them: Philadelphia is 5.5 games up with an elimination number of 19, the Cubs are 5.0 up at 14, and Arizona and San Diego are tied for the final spot, half a game apart, both at 13. St. Louis (4.0 back, elim 5) and Pittsburgh (5.0 back, elim 4) both have more room left than the Reds' 3.
The roster isn't getting healthier at the right time. Spencer Steer remains on the 10-day IL with a wrist injury and isn't scheduled to be examined until September 11, and Eugenio Suárez is day-to-day after Saturday's game against the Cubs.
Upcoming
Rhett Lowder takes the mound as the Reds host the Brewers tonight, opposite Milwaukee's Shane Drohan. Lowder is 6-8 with a 5.14 ERA and is coming off a win over the Cubs on August 28 in which he allowed 3 earned runs on 6 hits over 5 innings with 5 strikeouts. Drohan is 7-5 with a 3.75 ERA, coming off a win over the Rangers on August 29 in which he allowed 1 earned run on 6 hits over 5 innings with 6 strikeouts.
Milwaukee is favored on the road, and the total points to a high-scoring game between a Brewers club with a wild card cushion and a Reds club that needs results to keep its elimination number from running out.