The Reds are up!
Matt McLain, Elly De La Cruz, and Austin Hays strung together a trio of singles off Atlanta Braves starter Austin Cox last night in Bristol, the result of which was a 1-0 lead for the Cincinnati Reds in the Bottom of the 1st inning.
The rain-delayed MLB Speedway Classic in Bristol Motor Speedway had already been stop-started for hours, but that marked the end of any action the 85,000+ fans on hand would get to see on the day. Relentless storms on a field ill-equipped to shed that kind of water eventually forced the suspension of the game, with a 1 PM ET return to play on Sunday now on the docket.
How the fans – and players – spent the night in the Bristol area remains to be seen. There simply aren’t a ton of hotels for folks to stay in, and word is that the Reds had originally planned to travel on to Chicago after the scheduled completion of the game last night.
Obviously, those plans changed.
Chase Burns pitched the opening frame last night, but after warming up for hours before that it’s impossible to imagine him on the bump when play resumes. Lyon Richardson has been appointed as the additional player for the game today, though, with Will Benson being optioned (and TJ Friedl presumably being moved from the paternity -> restricted -> additional 27th man -> back to the active roster).
The action will be back on FOX, presumably, who seems oddly willing to dedicate another three hours of national coverage to the Reds after spending four hours of it during Saturday night in prime time.
Go Reds!