Cincinnati, OH – After Tuesday's game between the Philadelphia Phillies and Cincinnati Reds was suspended in the ninth inning of a scoreless tie due to rain, Jay Bruce helped end the contest quickly on Wednesday.
Bruce singled home the game-winning run in the bottom of the ninth inning to lift the Reds to a 1-0 victory over the Phillies in the middle test of a three-game set at Great American Ball Park.
Cincinnati quickly loaded the bases against Philadelphia reliever Phillippe Aumont (1-2), as Zack Cozart singled, Joey Votto walked, and Brandon Phillips reached first when his fly ball to left-center field tipped off the glove of center fielder Ben Revere and found the outfield grass.
"Obviously, there is no intensity," Aumont said of essentially pitching as a starter because of the suspended game. "As a pitcher, you have to find a way to fire yourself up."
Bruce then scorched a single to right field to score Cozart and send the Reds to their second consecutive victory.
"I wished it was quicker," Bruce said of the outcome. "It was nice to get that one out of the way and set the tone for the second game."
Aroldis Chapman (2-0) was credited with the victory after tossing a perfect top of the ninth on Tuesday when he took over for starter Homer Bailey, who tied a career-high with 10 strikeouts while scattering two hits over eight scoreless innings.
Philadelphia starter Kyle Kendrick struck out four and allowed just two hits over seven innings on Tuesday, but the Phillies managed just two hits and struck out 12 times in suffering their second straight defeat.
The start of Tuesday's game was originally delayed over 90 minutes because of rain, but went on without stoppage until the completion of the top half of the ninth.
Both offenses struggled to put anything together on Tuesday, as neither team moved a baserunner past second base.
After Kendrick was removed following seven strong frames, Antonio Bastardo took over on the mound and spun a perfect eighth before Chapman matched him in the ninth to keep the game scoreless.
Aumont took the mound to start the bottom of the ninth, but the heavy rain started before the hard-throwing right-hander could fire a pitch, forcing the game to be suspended until Wednesday.
Game Notes
The teams will complete this three-game set at 7:10 p.m. (ET) Wednesday night, as Philadelphia sends John Lannan to the hill, while Cincinnati counters with right-hander Mike Leake ... Cincinnati went 1-for-5 with runners in scoring position and left seven on base ... Chase Utley and Michael Young had the only two hits for the Phillies.
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