Bryce Harper hit his first three hits of the season, including a grand slam, to lead the Philadelphia Phillies to a 9-4 victory over the Cincinnati Reds on Tuesday night.
Philadelphia also got a homer from Brandon Marsh, rebounding well from their loss in the series opener on Monday. Spencer Turnbull had a solid outing, striking out seven in five innings.
“It felt great to contribute with three homers,” Harper said. “But I also want to commend Spencer for pitching well. It was a solid performance.” Harper hadn’t found much success at the plate in the Phillies’ first few games, going 0 for 11 with just a walk. However, he turned things around in a big way against the Reds.
The former NL MVP smashed solo homers in both the first and fourth innings against Graham Ashcraft. He then sealed the Phillies’ victory with a grand slam in the seventh inning against Brent Suter, marking his second career three-homer game and 26th multi-homer game. He ended the night with a career-high six RBIs.
“He had an outstanding game,” remarked Reds manager David Bell. “It’s not often just one player makes the difference, but tonight Harper certainly did. He was the difference-maker.”
This marked the first time a Phillies’ player hit three home runs in a game at Citizens Bank Park since Jayson Werth did so on May 16, 2008, against Toronto.
Playing in challenging weather conditions, both teams struggled defensively, combining for five errors, including two by Reds’ shortstop Elly De La Cruz. Cincinnati also had a wild pitch, while the Phillies had a passed ball. Ashcraft, making his first start of the season, was charged with three runs (two earned) and four hits.
Spencer Steer had a performance for the Reds, tallying three hits, including an RBI single in the ninth inning. Turnbull, making his Phillies debut, gave up an unearned run and three hits over five innings. Ricardo Pinto earned his first career save in his first MLB appearance since 2019, pitching four innings and allowing three runs (two earned) and five hits.
Pinto’s arrival at the ballpark was delayed until the fourth inning, as he couldn’t secure a flight from Rochester, where he was with Triple-A Lehigh Valley, and had to make an eight-hour drive instead.
