Yankees struggle to produce big hit in 6-1 loss to Reds

The Yankees couldn't make the most of a few mid-inning rallies on Monday night, as they fell to the Cincinnati Reds, 6-1, in their series opener at Great American Ball Park.

Here are the takeaways…

— The Yankees didn't waste much time drawing first blood against Reds starter Nick Lodolo. With two outs in the first inning, Aaron Judge crushed a fastball deep to left that landed in the second deck for a solo home run. The 398-foot moonshot was No. 28 on the season for Judge, who remains on pace for a second straight 58-homer campaign. He nearly connected on No. 29 in the third, but his flyout fell a couple feet shy of the wall in center.

— With a rotation spot open due to Ryan Yarbrough's oblique injury, the Yankees called up Allan Winans from Triple-A to make his 2025 debut, and he provided mixed results. The 29-year-old right-hander worked effectively early on, facing the minimum through the first three innings on just 24 pitches. But he fell into trouble in the fourth, giving up a game-tying triple to Elly De La Cruz, an RBI sac fly to Spencer Steer, and a solo homer to Gavin Lux.

— The Yankees had opportunities to inflict further damage on Lodolo — who was pulled with one out in the fifth at 94 pitches — but couldn't capitalize with traffic on the basepaths. They left six on base through five innings, going 0-for-8 with RISP. Winans returned for a fifth inning of work but didn't complete it, as another jam produced a fourth Reds run and forced him at 62 pitches with one out. Ian Hamilton was then tasked with cleaning up a bases-loaded mess, and he did just that by inducing a double-play grounder. Winans gave up those four runs on five hits and only struck out one.

— Hamilton kept the Reds off the board in the sixth and seventh innings, registering a pair of strikeouts, but Tim Hill replaced him with one out in the latter frame and worked around a single by inducing an inning-ending double play. In the eighth, the Yankees had yet another prime chance to score following a leadoff double by Cody Bellinger — his second of the game — and a walk to Judge. But the threat didn't faze Reds reliever Tony Santillan, who proceeded to strike out Giancarlo Stanton and Jazz Chisholm Jr. and force Anthony Volpe into a groundout.

— The Reds bumped their lead to 5-1 in the eighth, when De La Cruz smacked a sinker from Hill to the right-field seats for his 17th homer this season. Mark Leiter Jr. then entered in relief after the longball, and saw an inning-ending grounder plate a sixth Reds run due to an errant throw to first by Volpe. While the Yankees made Lodolo labor all night, they didn't make the Reds' bullpen sweat too much. They logged just two hits over the final 4.2 frames, striking out seven times. Overall, they fanned 13 times and went 0-for-12 with RISP.

Game MVP: Elly De La Cruz

The Reds' shortstop showcased his elite pop and speed, finishing 3-for-4 with a solo homer, game-tying triple, RBI single, and two runs scored. He's now hitting .272 this season with an .861 OPS — currently career-high marks.

Highlights

What's next

The Yankees (45-33) will play the middle game of their series on Tuesday night, with first pitch scheduled for 7:10 p.m.

Carlos Rodón (9-5, 3.10 ERA) is slated to take the mound, opposite Reds top prospect Chase Burns, making his MLB debut.

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