Cubs' broadcast is salty after historic feat helps keep Reds' playoff hopes alive

The Cincinnati Reds can send a gift basket to Ronald Acuña Jr. and the Atlanta Braves after their 6-5 victory in extra innings over the Chicago Cubs on Wednesday night.

The Reds, who's playoff chances are hanging by a thread, needed some help from some other ball clubs after losing 4-3 to the Cleveland Guardians. The New York Mets helped out a little, but it was the Braves who have kept Cincinnati's slim postseason hopes alive.

Along the way, Acuña Jr. became the first player in Major League Baseball history to hit 40 home runs and steal 70 bases. However, after Acuńa Jr. accomplished that feat, the Cubs' broadcast team did not appreciate the game coming to a halt while the Atlanta faithful stood and cheered.

Cubs' broadcast is salty after historic feat helps keep Reds' playoff hopes alive

The Atlanta Braves were down 4-3 in the bottom of the ninth inning until Marcel Ozuna launched a game-tying home run that would send the game into extra innings with the score tied at 4-4.

The Chicago Cubs scratched across a run in the 10th to make the score 5-4, but Ronald Acuńa Jr.'s RBI single in the bottom of the inning knotted the score once again.

Acuña Jr. then got himself into scoring position by swiping his 70th bag of the season. This being a record-breaking feat, Acuña Jr. celebrated at second base by pulling the base up, holding it above his head, and received a standing ovation from the crowd at Truist Park.

The base was then collected and kept for safe keeping. It may very well end up in Cooperstown for all we know. But the Cubs' broadcast did not like the disruption to the game and said, “We’re really stopping the game to do a highlight montage?”

As baseball fans, we've all seen a game stopped in order to pay respect for special moments. Heck, there was a car driven onto the the field at Riverfront Stadium after Pete Rose hit No. 4,192. Joey Votto received a standing ovation last Sunday in what could be his final home game as a member of the Cincinnati Reds.

In fact, I'm pretty sure the crowd at Wrigley Field gave a standing ovation to Willson Contreras during his final at-bat for the Chicago Cubs last season. While that was before the pitch clock was institued, the flow of the game was still stopped in order to recognize Contreras' career accomplishments during his time in the Windy City.

The Cubs' loss leaves them just a 1.5 games up on the Reds with four days remaining in the 2023 season. Cincinnati's playoff hopes definitely took a hit following Wednesday's loss, but Ronald Acuña Jr. and the Atlanta Braves helped keep hope alive in the Queen City.