One was scheduled starter Jakob Junis, who was scratched for personal reasons. The other was another starting pitcher lapsing to the injured list, Julian Aguiar with a sprained elbow.
That forced Benavides to start homer-prone Carson Spiers and it didn’t go well.
Spiers gave up two home runs in the first inning, a solo shot by No. 2 hitter Manzardo and a two-run rip by Lane Thomas, putting the Reds down, 3-0 in the first inning.
The home runs were the 19th and 20th Spiers has given up in 87 innings.
With the win, the American League Central champion Guardians clinched a bye for the first round of the playoffs.
And Cincinnati’s 82nd loss assured the Reds of a losing season.
It also clinched the much-ignored Ohio Cup for the Guardians, the least publicized bauble in major league baseball. It goes annually to the winner of the season’s series between the Reds and Guardians.
The Guardians have guarded the cup since 2015. A few years ago, Reds pitcher Tim Birtsas was asked if he was excited about starting an Ohio Cup game and he said, “What’s the Ohio Cup, a boat race?”
The Reds faced Cleveland’s 11-game winner Tanner Bibee and that too didn’t go well for the Reds. Bibee held the Reds to one run and four hits over seven innings wlhile striking out seven.
He retired seven straight after a scary episode in the fifth inning. A 96 mph fastball hit Jonathan India squarely on the ‘C’ on his batting helmet. He went down for a few moments, but stayed in the game. But he left after six innings.
The Reds had an opportunity to get back in the game with two on and two outs in the third. But Elly De La Cruz struck out for the second time.
That increased his MLB-leading strikeout total to 212 and also increased his club single-season record.
The Reds had another opportunity in the fourth. They scored a run, but it could have been more.
Tyler Stephenson doubled and scored on Spencer Steer’s single, ending a 15-inning run drought for the Reds. TJ Friedl walked, putting two on with no outs. But Ty France struck out and Jake Fraley hit into a double play.
Ian Gibaut, fresh off the injured list, made his season’s debut in the fifth and retired the first two Guardians. Then Jose Ramirez singled and scored on Josh Naylor’s double into the right field corner.
The Guardians made it 6-1 in the seventh against Emilio Pagan, scoring two aggressive runs on one hit.
Pagan opened the inning by walking Manzardo. Ramirez double Manzardo to third. Josh Naylor’s sacrifice fly scored Manzardo and Thomas drove in his third run with a ground ball that scored Ramirez.
Only because he needed work, Cleveland closer Emmanuel Clase and his 0.63 earned run average pitched the ninth.
Before his first pitch, radio broadcaster Jeff Brantley said, “Facing Clase is like a football team being fourth-and-99 and your punter is hurt.”
Clase finished it in 1-2-3 fashion.
As far as managerial strateagy, Benavides used the same lineup and batting order that Bell favored and after Spiers left there was a steady stream of relievers pitching an inning or less — Gibaut, Justin Wilson, Pagan and Yosver Zulueta.
About the Author