Reds News: Terry Francona ejected, Derek Johnson's hiatus, Rhett Lowder returns

The Cincinnati Reds dropped their series opener to the St. Louis Cardinals in brutal fashion on Friday, but manager Terry Francona wasn't around to see it. The skipper was ejected during the first inning after a controversial play at first base that could've (and should've) kept the Cardinals off the scoreboard.

With the Reds leading 3-0 in the bottom of the first inning and runners on first and third, Brady Singer's 2-1 pitch to Bryan Torres was chopped to second base. A charging Spencer Steer gathered the ball, threw across his body, and delivered the ball to Sal Stewart who was covering first base.

But first base umpire Ben May ruled that the throw took Stewart off the bag. The runner reached safely, and the Cardinals' runner from third base crossed home plate to make the score 3-1. Stewart immediately signaled to the Reds' dugout, and Cincinnati challenged the safe call at first.

Numerous replays appeared to show Stewart's foot clearly on the bag, but the official review was deemed inconclusive, and the call on the field was upheld. Francona, who was visibly upset, stormed onto the field and began to argue the call. That resulted in an immediate ejection, and bench coach Freddie Benevides took over as acting manager.

That one play changed the entire complexion of the game. St. Louis added another run in the bottom of the inning, and once again in the third and the fifth. Later, the Cardinals plated another six runs in the bottom of the sixth inning and won by a final score of 10-3.

Reds News: Terry Francona disagreed with the replay review

"The longer they waited, I was getting madder and madder," Francona said after the game. "It's not something I set out to do, especially with Trace (Reds assistant pitching coach Matt Tracy) in his first game and everything, you know? I just was getting madder and madder as I was waiting."

Francona pointed out that the manner in which Stewart received the ball gave the umpire the opportunity to call the runner safe, but still maintained his opinion that the runner was out. The Reds skipper even claimed that he has a picture showing Stewart's foot on the bag.

With Ke'Bryan Hayes on the injured list, Stewart has been spending more time at third base, but he's still played plenty of games at the cold corner this season, and that looked like a missed call on the part of the first base umpire and the replay officials in New York.

Reds News: Derek Johnson leave of absence, Rhett Lowder returns

Francona mentioned that Friday's game in St. Louis was the first time that Matt Tracy took over game duties for Reds pitching coach Derek Johnson. The team announced on Friday that Johnson would be taking a personal leave of absence. No further details were given and the timeline is indefinite.

On a positive note, the Reds are planning to welcome Rhett Lowder back to the active roster on Sunday. The right-hander has been sidelined with right shoulder pain since May 13, but looked sharp in his recent rehab outing. Lowder is slated to toe the rubber on Sunday versus the Cardinals, and a corresponding move will be announced before the game.

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