Rookie Encarnacion-Strand steps up in the clutch with walk-off homer

CINCINNATI -- In the bottom of the ninth inning of a 0-0 game, it doesn’t take much to swing the game in the home team’s favor. One rally, one home run, is enough to end the game.

On Friday evening at Great American Ball Park, it didn’t matter that the Reds were no-hit for 5 1/3 innings. It didn’t matter that they had been shut down hard by the Blue Jays’ bullpen. With Christian Encarnacion-Strand at the plate, one good swing was all they needed. And he delivered, slugging a 2-2 pitch a Statcast-projected 411 feet to left field to give Cincinnati a 1-0 walk-off victory over the Blue Jays.

“In a game like this, you can almost sense that it's going to take one swing of the bat,” manager David Bell said. “You can actually fall into the trap of that. As a hitter, you start looking to do that. And that's what was impressive about what Christian did. He wasn't trying to do that right there.”

With wins in three of their past four games, the Reds have pushed themselves back into a playoff spot. They have a half-game lead over Miami for the final National League Wild Card position, and they only sit two games behind Milwaukee for the NL Central lead.

Cincinnati finished its season series against the Marlins at a 3-3 tie, so the teams' record against division opponents will serve as the next tiebreaker. As things stand, Miami has a slight edge, sporting a .424 winning percentage (14-19) against NL East teams. The Reds have a .410 winning percentage (16-23) against NL Central opponents.

“We're getting to the fun part of the season,” catcher Tyler Stephenson said. “Any win is obviously huge, and you've just gotta keep taking it day-by-day and just coming in, getting our work in and trusting everybody around us and seeing where this team takes us.”

Cincinnati brought in its closer, Alexis Díaz, to shut down Toronto in the top of the ninth, and the Blue Jays responded by sending out the flamethrowing Jordan Hicks. Joey Votto flied out to left, and suddenly Encarnacion-Strand, the 23-year-old rookie, was at the plate staring down the hardest-throwing pitcher he’s ever faced, by his own assessment.

Encarnacion-Strand watched a sweeper in the heart of the zone, then stayed put on another sweeper down low. A 100.2 mph sinker down the middle showed the 23-year-old what he was really up against.

“He threw one and I didn't see it,” Encarnacion-Strand said. “The one down, that got there so quick. That's the hardest I've seen.”

After a four-seamer away, Hicks came back with an 85.7 sweeper around the same spot he had placed his earlier sinker. And it was the perfect opportunity for Encarnacion-Strand to swing for the first time in the at-bat. He barreled up the ball and sent it out for the fourth home run of his Major League career.

“I always try to do damage,” Encarnacion-Strand said. “That's why, maybe, I strike out. But if you try to go do damage, sometimes [a home run] happens, too.”

It wasn’t the first time on Friday night that Encarnacion-Strand found the left-field seats. In the fourth inning, he barreled up an 0-1 pitch, but he swung a bit too early. The ball carried far above the left-field foul pole and, despite traveling 403 feet, it landed in foul territory.

Encarnacion-Strand may have delivered the game’s only scoring, but he wasn’t the only rookie to make an impact on offense. In the sixth inning, with the Reds still searching for their first hit off Blue Jays starter José Berríos, Matt McLain grounded an up-and-in sinker into shallow center field to end the no-hitter. Elly De La Cruz followed McLain’s single with a walk.

In the eighth inning, McLain grounded an infield single on a bobbled ball by third baseman Matt Chapman and De La Cruz worked a six-pitch walk to put two runners on with two outs. It was a good sign for De La Cruz, who entered Friday at 1-for-9 over his past two games. He didn’t get another hit, but he had his first multi-walk game since June 11, and the fifth of his career.

“A lot of times I feel like the walks are kind of a byproduct of being in a good position to hit, being ready to hit, being able to see the ball longer,” Bell said. “And it felt like Elly was in swing-mode all night, but he was able to lay off and not chase, and I think that's a really good sign.”