CHICAGO -- For seven innings, the Reds’ offense had little to show. By the end of the 10th, it had done just enough to steal one.
Elly De La Cruz dove into home as the tying run during a three-run eighth-inning rally, then lifted a go-ahead sacrifice fly in the 10th to propel Cincinnati to a 5-4 comeback win over the White Sox on Tuesday night at Rate Field.
Matt McLain began the 10th as the automatic runner at second and advanced to third on Michael Toglia’s deep fly ball to right field. De La Cruz followed with another, allowing McLain to race home with Cincinnati’s first lead of the night.
Emilio Pagán made it stand, winning a 14-pitch battle with Sam Antonacci for a crucial strikeout before inducing consecutive popouts to strand Chicago’s automatic runner at second and seal the Reds’ improbable comeback.
White Sox starter Sean Burke had held Cincinnati to one run on three hits through seven innings, with Eugenio Suárez’s fifth-inning homer providing the Reds’ lone damage. But once Burke exited, the game flipped quickly.
McLain, Toglia and De La Cruz opened the eighth with three consecutive singles, with De La Cruz’s knock cutting the deficit to two. Sal Stewart flew out to right to advance the runners, JJ Bleday walked to load the bases and Tyler Stephenson lined a two-run single to right, easily scoring De La Cruz from second to pull Cincinnati even at 4.
The late rally rescued Nick Lodolo from a loss in his first start since returning from the injured list. Lodolo allowed four runs and three homers over four innings, but the Reds’ bullpen kept Chicago scoreless the rest of the way, giving the offense enough time to awaken and complete the comeback.