Singer dominates in pitchers' duel before Benson sparks Reds' win

CINCINNATI -- Brady Singer, Will Benson and a workhorse bullpen did all they could to send the Reds racing toward Bristol Motor Speedway in winning fashion.

All of the above will be critical pieces for the Reds, as they try to cross the finish line at the end of the season and reach the postseason for the first time in five years.

Both served notice of their great potential Friday afternoon in a game that took two hours, 16 minutes and ended in a 3-2 win at Great American Ball Park. Singer (9-8) threw six scoreless innings, holding the Atlanta Braves to four hits while striking out a season-high 10 batters and walking one.

“I told Chase Burns I could do it, too,” joked Singer, referencing the rookie pitcher who has struck out 10 batters in each of his last three starts.

Singer threw 97 pitches and recorded consecutive wins for the first time since opening the season 4-0. In his last two starts, Singer has allowed just one run and seven hits over 13 1/3 innings, striking out 18 and walking just two.

“After the All-Star break, it's time to go,” Singer said. “And, yeah, we just keep putting together series wins and keep winning games and giving us a chance to win. We're gonna be there. We just got to get there to start. This team's awesome. I love coming to work with them every day.”

Will Benson provided the offensive spark, singling off Atlanta starter Bryce Elder (4-8) to open the sixth. After stealing second, he scored on Matt McLain’s two-out single to center to put Cincinnati up, 1-0. Benson’s ninth homer of the season, a two-run opposite field shot to left off reliever Dylan Dodd in the seventh, provided insurance.

Batting .217 before going 2-for-3 with a homer Friday, Benson said he’s tried everything to get his karma right, including borrowing a chain from good friend Elly De La Cruz.

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“That didn't really work, so I just kept going,” Benson said. “I hoped that made the difference, but it didn't. So I just kept to the grind.”

While TJ Friedl has been out this week for the birth of his second child, Jonah, Benson has filled in impressively in center, making sliding catches, crashing into walls to rob extra bases and Friday, tracking down a Drake Baldwin drive to deep left-center that would’ve scored two runs in the eighth and made things much more uncomfortable in the ninth.

After Singer dominated for six innings and then the bullpen was asked to bring the Reds home.

It’s a part of the team in 2025 that has been -- individually and collectively -- a workhorse.

Scott Barlow pitched a scoreless seventh. Tony Santillan pitched the eighth, extending his Major League leading appearance total to 55 games, two more than the next highest on the list, Barlow and New York Mets reliever Tyler Rogers.

Then came Emilio Pagán for the ninth, making his 48th appearance of the season, and his sixth appearance in eight days. The right-hander admitted after allowing two runs on two hits and walking one that his tank was nearly empty.

“We just know that we've got a shot to do this,” Pagan said. “And so we talked about it. I'm trying to take the math out of it. I've thrown this many times. I probably should have a day down. I came in today, I played catch, and I felt okay. I felt like I could go get three outs. And so the performance shows that I probably was right on the edge of that.”

Pagan got his former Padres teammate Jurickson Profar to ground out to end the game for his 23rd save in 26 chances.

“That was a grind, pretty much running on fumes there today,” Pagan said. “It was ugly, but [we] got it done. So yeah, not happy with how it went, but I am happy we got the win.”

The team can take a collective deep breath before it leaves for Bristol, Tenn., Saturday morning after bouncing back from Thursday’s gut-punching 12-11 loss in 10 innings. It doesn’t have to always be pretty or smooth, just a win.

“But we got the job done,” Pagan said. “We got the win. And so there's a lot of selfless guys in this clubhouse, and that's what it's going to take. That's what it's going to take going down the stretch. We need guys to do things that might make them uncomfortable.

“I definitely did not feel comfortable out there today, but anytime we can stack another win that gives us another chance for fighting again tomorrow. So, this team's got a lot of fight in it, and we've shown it all year long. It's going to be a fun run.”