After the Cincinnati Reds lost their first six games of their season series against the San Diego Padres in nearly every way imaginable, they did the improbable Thursday.
Kyle Farmer hammered a game-tying home run in the bottom of the ninth inning, connecting on a cutter that didn’t cut, and Tyler Stephenson hit a walk-off single to give the Reds a stunning 5-4 victory at Great American Ball Park in front of 16,620 fans.
Things seemed lined up for more heartbreak. The Reds left a season-high 15 runners on base through the first eight innings, at least one in each of the first eight innings.