Phelps earns victory as Marlins defeat Reds
CINCINNATI -- David Phelps earned his first win of the season as a starter by allowing two runs and striking out eight batters in 5 1/3 innings as the Miami Marlins beat the Cincinnati Reds, 6-3, Monday night at Great American Ball Park. Miami used six relievers to back up Phelps' effort.
Martin Prado went 3-for-5 while Chris Johnson and Marcell Ozuna each hit solo home runs to back up Phelps (6-6) in his third start of the season. Phelps had made 50 appearances out of the bullpen before getting his first start on Aug. 5 at Colorado.
He was pulled after giving up a one-out single to Ivan De Jesus with a 4-1 lead in the sixth inning. Three relievers -- Brian Ellington, Hunter Cervenka and Dustin McGowan -- followed him in the inning, combining for three walks but McGowan struck out Tony Renda to leave the bases loaded and keep Miami in front, 4-2.
Fernando Rodney pitched a scoreless ninth inning to earn his 21st save of the season overall and his fourth since being acquired in a trade with San Diego on June 30. The Marlins have now beaten the Reds in all four games they've played this season and six times in a row overall.
Miami's third win in a row pulls the Marlins (62-56) into a tie with St. Louis for the second wild-card spot in the National League. Reds starter Brandon Finnegan (6-9) took the loss after allowing four runs on seven hits in 5 1/3 innings. Finnegan struck out three but also walked three and gave up the homers to Johnson and Ozuna, pushing his season total to 26.
Johnson also had an RBI double in the sixth inning, scoring J.T. Realmuto for a 4-1 lead. Realmuto walked following Ozuna's home run and was the final batter Finnegan faced.
The Marlins scored first in a game for the 69th time this season when Dee Gordon led off the first inning with a double to right field, then scored without a throw on a single to right by Prado. Prado's hit capped a 12-pitch at-bat that included six pitches fouled off.
Phelps struck out the side in the bottom of the first and retired the first two batters in the second before Scott Schebler broke an 0-for-28 streak with a solo home run to center field to tie the score 1-1. It was the third homer of the season for Schebler, who has taken over right field for Cincinnati after Jay Bruce was traded to the Mets.
The Marlins regained the lead, 2-1, with two outs in the fourth when Johnson hit his fifth home run of the season. It went just 327 feet but was enough to get over the fence in front of the Marlins' bullpen in right field.
Phelps struck out eight batters in the first five innings, including five looking.
NOTES: Marlins manager Don Mattingly was ejected in the bottom of the third inning for arguing with home plate umpire Bill Welke over a check-swing call ruled no swing against the Reds' Tucker Barnhart. ... Reds CF Billy Hamilton was replaced by Tyler Holt in the top of the fifth inning. Hamilton hit the center-field wall hard in the third inning attempting to catch a ball hit by Martin Prado. The Reds announced Hamilton suffered a right-knee contusion. The hit went for a triple. ... The Reds optioned LHP Cody Reed to Triple-A Louisville before Monday's game and recalled OF Kyle Waldrop. Reed went 0-7 in 10 starts with a 7.36 ERA. He gave up six runs on five hits and three walks in one-plus innings in a 7-3 loss at Milwaukee on Sunday. No replacement has yet been named for his spot in the rotation. ... Mattingly said he expects OF Ichiro Suzuki to get the bulk of the playing time in right field after OF Giancarlo Stanton suffered a groin injury that could cost him the rest of the season. ... Reds SS Zack Cozart was given a day off from the starting lineup and 2B Brandon Phillips (knee contusion) also was out of the lineup. Manager Bryan Price is hopeful Phillips can start on Tuesday. ... Of the 30 current ballparks, Great American Ball Park in Cincinnati is the only one where Ichiro hasn't recorded a hit.