Cincinnati Reds Lose Rubber Match to Diamondbacks in Extras

W: Josh Collmenter (4-6)

L: Ryan Mattheus (1-3)

The Cincinnati Reds dropped a back-and-forth rubber match with the Arizona Diamondbacks on Sunday, falling 4-3 in 10 innings.

Chris Owings provided the walk-off hit off of Reds reliever Ryan Mattheus, who curiously replaced Jumbo Diaz in the 10th after Diaz had thrown only five pitches in the ninth. Mattheus retired only one batter in the inning, giving up a walk, a single, a sacrifice bunt, and an intentional walk before Owings ended it.

The game didn’t end without some controversy, however, as it was evident that David Peralta and Jake Lamb didn’t touch third and second base, respectively, on the walk-off hit. Reds manager Bryan Price protested the call, but the umpires opted not to review the play.

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It was a rough outing for Anthony DeSclafani, who was coming off back-to-back wins against the Cardinals in his previous two starts. The Diamondbacks got to the rookie for three runs on a whopping 10 hits, knocking him from the game after six innings.

Yet again, the D-backs wasted no time in getting the scoring started. For the third time in the series, they scored in the first inning when Paul Goldschmidt picked up his first hit of the series, a double that made it a 1-0 game.

The Reds would tie the game in the fourth. Billy Hamilton, batting in the leadoff spot for the second straight game, doubled to start the inning (only his seventh double of the season, somehow) and scored on a single by Marlon Byrd. A botched double play with the bases loaded allowed the Reds to take the lead as Joey Votto scored.

Goldschmidt helped his team regain the lead in the fifth, singling with two outs and scoring on a double by Peralta, who had five hits. Next batter Jarrod Saltalamacchia drove home the go-ahead run with a single.

Eugenio Suarez led off the seventh with a double and scored one batter later, when Ivan De Jesus Jr. roped a double to left-center field to tie things once more at 3-3. With a runner on second and nobody out, the Reds had a prime opportunity to go ahead, but Tucker Barnhart popped out to the catcher on a questionable bunt, pinch hitter Todd Frazier struck out on an even more questionable strike three call, and Hamilton flew out.

They had another chance to win it in the eighth with runners on first and third, but Jay Bruce struck out and Suarez sent a weak ground ball back to the pitcher.

Two innings later, it was all over, as the Diamondbacks untied the game for good.

Other Notes:

• Aside from Mattheus, the Reds’ bullpen pitched well. Burke Badenhop, Manny Parra, J.J. Hoover, and Diaz combined to throw three shutout innings.
• Bruce snapped an 0-for-21 spell with a single in the fourth inning.
• Brandon Phillips stole his 17th base of the season in the eighth inning, his sixth steal in his last 10 games. Considering he swiped seven bases in 2013 and 2014 combined, it’s hard not to be impressed with Phillips’ stolen base resurgence this year.

Up Next: The Reds will continue their west coast swing in San Diego on Monday night. David Holmberg will toe the rubber for his third start of the season, while Ian Kennedy starts for the Padres. First pitch will be at 10:10 p.m. EST.

Next: Reds' bench a glaring weakness in 2015