Reds' brilliance under Terry Francona makes Sandy Alcantara's comments even worse

The Cincinnati Reds had no answer for Sandy Alcantara on Tuesday night. The Miami Marlins ace was near-flawless through eight innings, having allowed no runs on just two hits. After TJ Friedl flied out to begin the top of the ninth inning with the Reds trailing 2-0, Matt McLain rocked a double into left field to bring the tying run to the plate.

Alcantara walked Elly De La Cruz to put runners on first and second. Marlins manager Clayton McCullough then emerged from the dugout to a loud chorus from boos from the crowd. He signaled to the bullpen and brought on Anthony Bender to face Reds' rookie Sal Stewart. Alcantara seemed less than pleased by the decision, and he said as much after the game.

“I feel like I deserve to be asked how I feel before getting taken out of the game, at 95 pitches and a righty on deck, but I respect the decision," Alcantara said after the game.

Based on the results, McCullough is likely to take Alcantara's advice next time. The Reds rallied to score two runs in the top of the ninth, and after Emilio Pagán shut the door during the bottom-half of the inning, Cincinnati plated four runs in the 10th and won by the final score of 6-3.

Reds manager Terry Francona oversaw a near-flawless game vs. Marlins

While McCullough is getting criticized at every turn — and rightly so — Reds manager Terry Francona deserves a ton of credit for Cincinnati's win on Tuesday night. Tito managed a near-perfect game and showed why he'll one day be immortalized in Cooperstown.

Andrew Abbott battled through 5⅓ innings, but after McLain was called for interference on a tag play at second that took an out off the board, the Reds' lefty walked the next batter to load the bases. Francona lifted his starter and turned to Pierce Johnson who promptly induced a ground ball for the second out of the inning, and then struck out Liam Hicks to end Miami's threat.

Francona turned the ball over to rookie hurler Jose Franco who kept the Reds afloat in the seventh and eighth innings. Though he walked two batters, Franco kept the Marlins off the board, and the Reds entered the ninth inning with a chance to tie the game.

With McLain and De La Cruz aboard, the duo pulled off a double steal during Sal Stewart's at-bat. That allowed McLain to score on a fly out to right field. De La Cruz then scurried home on a passed ball to knot the score at 2-2. Pagán did his job during the bottom of the ninth, and the team's entered the 10th deadlocked.

Francona pulled all the right strings once again. Spencer Steer (the ghost runner at second base) advanced to third on a wild pitch, and after a Tyler Stephenson walk and Noelvi Marte strikeout, Nathaniel Lowe — who Tito turned to as a pinch hitter earlier in the game — stepped into the batter's box and laced an RBI single into the outfield.

Two batters later, after Lowe was lifted for the pinch-runner Dane Myers, McLain hit a two-run double to put the Reds up 5-2. De La Cruz blistered a ground ball to third base that allowed TJ Friedl to score and Cincinnati took a 6-2 lead into the bottom of the 10th. Graham Ashcraft slammed the door and Cincinnati went home the winner.

It was a total team victory, and while Francona will always gives credit to his players, the Reds' skipper pulled off one heckuva job from the dugout on Tuesday night. Counter that with the comments Alcantara made about his manager, and you can see why this Reds team loves playing for Francona.