TJ Friedl's walk-off single vs. Rangers snaps Cincinnati Reds losing streak

The biggest issue throughout the Cincinnati Reds’ six-game losing streak was their inability to produce any offense, totaling six runs in those six games.

Who knew the secret to breaking out of a slump was to stop swinging?

The Reds came back from a two-run deficit in the eighth inning Monday by drawing four walks, including two with the bases loaded against Texas Rangers reliever José Leclerc, and TJ Friedl delivered a walk-off single in the ninth inning for a 7-6 victory at Great American Ball Park to snap their losing streak.

Jonathan India opened the bottom of the ninth inning with a four-pitch walk – the Reds drew six walks and had one hit batsman – before Friedl’s heroics. It was the Reds’ first walk-off win of the season and Friedl was mobbed by his teammates in right field with Gatorade thrown on him.

The Reds’ bullpen allowed one hit across five scoreless innings after a poor start from Nick Lodolo. Things started well for the second-year lefthander, striking out the side in the 13 pitches in the first inning, but quickly went off the rails.

Lodolo allowed five hits in a 30-pitch second inning, including a solo homer to Josh Jung in front of the crowd of 8,810. He surrendered a two-run homer to Jung in the third inning and another run in the fourth inning. He gave up six runs on nine hits and two walks in four innings, striking out six.

It marks back-to-back rough starts for Lodolo. He gave up four runs and 18 hits in his first three starts of the season, spanning 17 innings. In his last two outings, covering 8 2/3 innings, he’s permitted 14 runs and 21 hits. His ERA ballooned to 6.42.

The Reds’ offense, which had a ton of trouble hitting with runners in scoring position during the losing streak, produced a three-run third inning against Rangers starter Nathan Eovaldi. India drew a leadoff walk and TJ Friedl was hit by a pitch before Spencer Steer lined a triple over the head of center fielder Leody Taveras. Steer scored on a groundout.

Takeaways from the Reds’ win against the Rangers

1. The Reds gave Lodolo a mulligan after scoring three runs in the bottom of the third inning, which included Steer’s two-run triple. Down by a run, the Reds badly needed a shutdown inning from their starting pitcher.

Lodolo couldn’t put away Bubba Thompson, the No. 9 hitter. After starting in a 1-2 count, with two swings and misses, Thompson fouled six of the next eight pitches. Lodolo issued a leadoff walk in the 12-pitch battle, then watched Thompson steal second base and move to third on a wild pitch. Two batters later, Thompson scored on a single.

2. The Reds emphasized aggressive baserunning during spring training because they knew didn’t have many power hitters in their lineup. Even the two leaders in homers from last year – Brandon Drury (20) and Kyle Farmer (14) – were gone.

It’s probably been worse than expected in that category. Reds hitters haven’t homered since Kevin Newman put a ball into the first row of seats in left field last Monday. Their seven-game homerless streak is the team’s longest since April 21-27, 2014.

3. Thompson, the Rangers’ left fielder, misplayed a ball in the sun in the first inning that gave India a leadoff double and turned into a run. He made up for it with a pair of standout catches. He snagged a Tyler Stephenson line drive on the warning track to end the fifth inning, showing enough body control to prevent himself from crashing into the wall.

To begin the eighth inning, Thompson made a sliding catch in the left-center gap to take away a hit from Friedl. Five of the next six batters reached base, four via walks to tie the score, so it was a defensive highlight that loomed large.

Stat of the day

The Reds haven’t won a series against the Rangers since they swept a three-game series against them at GABP in 2004.

This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Reds vs. Rangers game: TJ Friedl walk-off hit ends losing streak