WASHINGTON — The Elly De La Cruz flap over that high-tech knob attachment on his bat – not to mention his upper-deck home run a few innings later – figure to get the biggest headlines from the Cincinnati Reds’ 9-2 victory Wednesday night over the Washington Nationals.
But standing tall in the immense shadow of the Reds’ powerful rookie Wednesday night was Graham Ashcraft, whose potential to impact the rest of their season is even more powerful – especially if it looks anything like these past two starts.
The burly right-hander navigated early command issues with the help of a pair of double plays, then settled in to produce a second straight strong outing, allowing just one run in six innings to earn his first win since May.