MILWAUKEE -- For the Reds, their postseason hopes hinge entirely on what happens on the final day of the season on Sunday afternoon.
Game 162.
By taking a 7-4 victory over the Brewers on Saturday night and winning the first two games of the three-game series, the Reds (83-78) maintained their command of the race for the final National League Wild Card spot. The Mets (83-78) also won at Miami, leaving the two teams tied in the standings going into the last day of the regular season.
“It’s exciting. Don’t run from it. I know sleep this time of year is not great anyway. We’ll be ready to go," manager Terry Francona said.
Because Cincinnati owns the tiebreaker based on its season series win over New York (4-2), it has some wiggle room. If the Reds win the finale at American Family Field, they clinch a playoff spot regardless of what the Mets do on Sunday. If the Reds lose, they must hope the Mets also lose vs. the Marlins to get in.
“I think if you could have promised us this in Spring Training, everybody would sign up for it every year," said closer Emilio Pagán, who pitched for the fourth consecutive day and notched his 32nd save. "As cool as it is to clinch ahead of time and know where you’re at, to have every single game be this meaningful is a gift, and it doesn’t come around often. Hopefully we can make the most of it.”
After losing to the Mets in Cincinnati on Sept. 5, the Reds were six games behind them -- with two teams separating them.
“They’re in survival mode and they’re playing their best baseball, and it’s dangerous," Brewers manager Pat Murphy said.
For the Reds, who claimed their first series vs. the Brewers since 2022, it was a perfect time to snap their streak of futility vs. a division rival.
The Brewers haven't just had their number for most of the past four years, it felt like they had all of the numbers, the letters and the punctuation, too. Milwaukee had taken each of the previous 13 series from Cincinnati, 14 of the past 15 and 17 of 19 since 2021.
“I don’t think I could state a better time," said starting pitcher Andrew Abbott, who pitched 5 1/3 innings and gave up three runs on five hits with no walks and four strikeouts. "Just everybody being behind each other, knowing what’s at stake, making at-bats, pitches and defense count when we need it -- we’ve got to do it one more time. Then we take a breath for a day and then refocus for the next one.”
If they can win one more game -- and sweep the series -- the Reds will be in the postseason for the first time since 2020.
“Obviously, we have a lot riding on tomorrow, and everyone’s going to be hyped up," said Abbott, who finished the regular season 10-7 with a 2.87 ERA in 29 starts. "There will be a lot of pressure and excitement for tomorrow. But that’s good. Hopefully we feed off of it and come ready to play.”
A six-run top of the third inning with 10 men sent to the plate gave Cincinnati a 6-0 lead over Milwaukee on Saturday. While a pair of errors boosted the rally, there were some key hits, including TJ Friedl's two-out, two-run single to left field against rookie Jacob Misiorowski. A third run crossed during the play on Isaac Collins' throwing error.
“When you’re playing [the Brewers], I wish it had been 12 [runs], because you know they’re going to keep coming," Francona said.
Rookie Sal Stewart added a two-out solo home run to right-center field in the sixth inning -- his fifth this month -- that gave the club a 7-2 lead.
“It means a lot, honestly, because everyone knows what’s at stake," said Stewart, who also hit an RBI single to center field to score the Reds' first run in the third inning. "It was nice to put a good swing on it, but that’s it. We put it to the side. The job’s not done yet. We’ve still got one more game to win tomorrow.”
Abbott opened the bottom of the sixth with Jackson Chourio hitting his 2-2 pitch to center field for a solo homer. Following a string of dominant appearances, Connor Phillips was shaky after replacing Abbott with one out in the sixth -- walking his first batter on four pitches and hitting his second batter, who scored on an RBI single two batters later.
Nick Martinez stopped Milwaukee’s momentum with two scoreless innings in the seventh and eighth.
“Nick Martinez giving us two was huge," Francona said.
Knowing the situation, Pagán had no qualms about pitching for the fourth straight day to finish.
"This is what you sign up for, for these opportunities and moments like this," Pagán said. "If I can throw it over the plate tomorrow, then I’m going to try my hardest to get in there.”
In the regular-season finale, the Reds will have Brady Singer pitching. Singer has been one of their best starters down the stretch while going 5-2 with a 2.49 ERA over his past eight starts. He will also be starting on his regular four days of rest.
Should Singer run into trouble and need to get pulled early, Cincinnati’s bullpen will be an all-hands-on-deck situation. Francona hasn't ruled out even using starters like Hunter Greene or Nick Lodolo, if needed.
"Everybody is willing to do whatever," Pagán said. "Putting our recent results kind of to the side -- they don’t really matter. It’s just about executing at that moment whenever you’re given your opportunity. We’re playing pretty clean baseball right now. It’s fun to watch.”