Todd Frazier Hits Walk-Off Slam; Cincinnati Reds Beat Tigers 8-4 in 13

W: Burke Badenhop (1-2)

L: Ian Krol (1-1)

The pitching matchup in Wednesday’s Detroit Tigers-Cincinnati Reds game was one that fans pay to go watch, with two aces on the mound in David Price and Johnny Cueto. The pitching duel somewhat lived up to the hype, but what made the game entertaining was the close game beyond the sixth inning and one Todd Frazier, who hit a walk-off grand slam in the 13^th inning to beat the Tigers 8-4. Vote this man to the All-Star Game, ladies and gentlemen. He deserves it.

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This game started on Wednesday and the Reds struck first when Bryan Price called for the squeeze play in the second inning. Eugenio Suarez laid down a perfect bunt to score Jay Bruce from third. In the fourth, Frazier extended the lead with his 21^st home run of the season and his third in the past two games.

Meanwhile, Cueto was dealing. He had retired 13 batters in a row at one point. In the sixth, however, it all began to go downhill. It started when he allowed a one-out single and then walked Ian Kinsler on five pitches. Miguel Cabrera came to the plate with two runners on base and hit a pitch on the outside corner halfway up the right field seats to put the Tigers up 3-2. There’s a reason Cabrera is quite possibly the best hitter in MLB. When a player hits that pitch to the opposite field with that kind of power, you just have to tip your hat to the guy.

Immediately after the Cabrera home run, the grounds crew rolled out the tarp. Cueto was not happy about the stoppage in play, although I imagine he was just as upset that he gave up the go-ahead homer. In 5.1 innings pitched, Cueto gave up three runs on three hits with two walks and four strikeouts.

The bullpen took over after the delay, in what turned out to be a long night for them. Manny Parra took the mound when play resumed. He struck out J.D. Martinez on three pitches to end the sixth. Carlos Contreras pitched a perfect seventh. Ryan Mattheus entered the game in the eighth and promptly gave up a home run on the first pitch he threw to Tyler Collins. Aroldis Chapman struck out the side in the ninth. Donovan Hand made his Reds debut in the tenth and pitched three scoreless innings. Burke Badenhop pitched a 1-2-3 13^th.

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The Reds responded to the Collins home run in the bottom of the eighth when Jay Bruce doubled with two outs. Brayan Pena singled in Bruce to tie the game at four when the ball ricocheted off of second base. It would stay tied until the 13^th inning when Frazier ended it.

Other Notes:

• Chris Dominguez, giving Joey Votto an off day at first base, had a crucial triple in the sixth to score Brayan Pena from first and tie the game at the time. He’s hit fairly well since returning to the Reds, which bodes well for his immediate future with the big league team.
• Bruce went 5-for-6, with two doubles, three singles and two runs scored. He was thrown out at the plate on the Pena double in the 10th on what would’ve been the winning run, but absolutely should have been sent. Detroit just made a better play defensively.
• I don’t know if I’ve ever seen a player who could outrun the baseball the way Billy Hamilton does. He almost made another spectacular diving catch in the first off the bat of Ian Kinsler, but it bounced out of his glove on the dive. It was still impressive, even if Hamilton didn’t complete the catch.
• Including Wednesday’s delay, there have been eight rain delays at Great American Ball Park, thus far in 2015, totaling 13 hours and three minutes. Mother Nature has not been kind to the Reds at home.

Up Next: The Reds finish up this four game series with the Tigers at GABP Thursday at 7:10 ET. Mike Leake (3-4, 4.35 ERA) gets the start for Cincinnati. For Detroit, Justin Verlander (0-0, 3.60 ERA) makes his second start of 2015 after being on the disabled list.

Next: Frazier's two HRs power Reds past Tigers, 5-2