CINCINNATI – Relief pitcher Michael Lorenzen hit his first major-league pinch-hit home run and Adam Duvall hit a two-run shot as the Reds rallied for a 7-4 victory over the Phillies Thursday afternoon.
Five Reds relievers blanked the Phillies on one hit over the last six innings after starting pitcher Rookie Davis struggled in his big-league debut.
Lorenzen, batting for reliever Cody Reed in the sixth inning, tagged Phillies reliever Adam Morgan with a blast to right center, breaking a 4-4 tie. It was Lorenzen’s second homer in 41 big-league at-bats and the Reds' first pinch-hit homer since Duvall on Aug. 31, 2015.
Duvall homered in the seventh after Jose Peraza singled and stole second.
Three Reds relievers - Wandy Peralta, Tony Cingrani and Blake Wood - pitched perfect innings. Reed gave up four walks in his two innings but got his first career win after going 0-7 as a starter last year. Drew Storen gave up a single in the ninth but got a save.
Reds pitchers finished with 12 strikeouts.
Davis gave up two homers to Phillies LF Daniel Nava and put the Reds in a 4-1 hole during his three innings on the mound. But the Reds tied it 4-4 with a three-run fourth inning off Phillies starter Clay Buchholz.
Eugenio Suarez went 2-for-2 and scored two runs, Duvall was 2-for-2 with two RBI and two runs scored, and Zack Cozart was 2-for-3 with two RBI for the Reds.
It was a landmark day for Davis and rookie catcher Stuart Turner, who became the first Reds’ batterymates in modern history to make their big-league debuts in the same game, according to Elias Sports.
But Davis, obtained from the Yankees in the Aroldis Chapman deal, allowed four earned runs, five hits and two walks. He struck out four. Turner went 0-for-3 but drove in a run with a sac fly.
The Reds answered Nava’s first-inning homer with a run in the second. Suarez hit a ground-rule double to right and came home on Cozart’s sac fly.
The Phillies got three in the third when Cesar Hernandez singled, Nava homered again, and Odubel Herrera scored on a wild pitch.
The first four Reds got on safely in the fourth. Adam Duvall and Suarez singled and Scott Schebler walked to load the bases.
The next three batters each drove in a run. Cozart had a bases-loaded single, Turner hit a sac fly and pinch-hitter Scooter Gennett grounded to first.
