Trailing 8-0 on the road after two innings did not discourage the Toronto Blue Jays one bit, as they pulled off an epic comeback to defeat the Cincinnati Reds 14-9 on Friday.
After a scoreless first inning and a half, the Reds’ bats came alive, producing eight runs in the bottom of the second. After a leadoff single by right fielder Jay Bruce, catcher Devin Morasco got the scoring started with a homer to left field. Left fielder Skip Schumaker and shortstop Zack Cozart followed with a pair of singles. Pitcher Mat Latos drove in Schumaker with an RBI ground out. Cozart came home on a double by center fielder Billy Hamilton.
After a lineout and a walk, second baseman Brandon Phillips brought in two runs with a base hit to center. With Cincinnati batting around, Bruce came up again, and this time he smacked a home run to center field for the final two runs of the innings. Morasco then struck out to end the rally.
“When we got down 8-nothing, guys in the dugout said ‘we’re going to come back and win this game,’ Toronto catcher Erik Kratz said after the game on MLB.com. “There was nobody that was hanging their head. Everybody was picking everybody up. The bullpen came in and shut it down, and allowed us to be in this situation to win it.”
In the ensuing inning, the Blue Jays started to get the runs back as first baseman Edwin Encarnacion smacked a three-run home run to left.
Cincinnati struck next with one run in the bottom of the fifth to take a 9-3 advantage.
The final four innings of the game would be all Toronto. In the sixth, they Jays scored two runs. One came on a base hit off the bat of pinch hitter Adam Lind, and the other came with a bases-loaded walk to right fielder Jose Bautista.
The following inning, three runs scored on two home runs. Third baseman Brett Lawrie hit a solo shot to right, and pinch hitter Jaun Francisco belted a two-run blast to left. The Blue Jays tied the game in the eighth with an RBI double by catcher Dioner Navarro.
In the ninth, Toronto blew the game open with five runs. After a walk and sacrifice bunt, Kratz delivered the go-ahead hit with a double to deep left. He came around to score on a single by left fielder Melky Cabrera. After walk to Bautista, Encarnacion blasted another three-run homer, reports ESPN.
Trailing by five runs in the bottom of the ninth, the Reds went 1-2-3.
Dustin McGowan picked up the win, and Aroldis Chapman suffered the loss.
The Blue Jays and Reds continue their three-game set on Saturday.