Atlanta Braves vs. Cincinnati Reds: Simulating 2020 NLDS

Game 2 of the 2020 NLDS: Cincinnati Reds pitcher Sonny Gray shines at Sun Trust

The second game pitted pitchers with ace credentials. The Reds went with Sonny Gray (14-6, 3.07), their veteran right-hander. Gray made only one regular-season appearance against the Braves, and it was a brief one. Six batters into his July 30 start, he walked Nick Markakis, squawked about two of the pitches, then hit Austin Riley in the thigh and was summarily ejected.

The Braves went on to win that game 5-1, breaking a five-game losing streak to Atlanta.

One night earlier, Max Fried (18-8, 2.37), Atlanta’s choice for the Game 2 start, handed the Reds the last of those losses, a 3-2 decision. Fried pitched into the sixth inning, allowing one run and three hits before being removed.

This game belonged to Gray from the start, especially after he weathered the first-inning threat. Albies started that threat with a double over Ervin’s head in center, and Gray complicated things for himself by walking Acuna and Riley with two out. But he got Travis d’Arnaud to bounce into an inning-ending fielder’s choice, then settled in and allowed just one hit over the next five innings.

Fried, too, pitched well…but not that well. Moustakas touched him for a second-inning home run, and his third-inning double sent Nick Castellanos across to make it 2-0. In the fifth, Votto singled ahead of Suarez’s home run, giving Cincinnati and Gray a 4-0 advantage.

The Braves made one last run at Gray in the seventh when Votto’s error allowed Riley to reach. One out later he found himself on third base thanks to Swanson’s walk and Camargo’s base hit. Pinch hitter Adeiny Hechavarria followed with a fly ball to medium center, but Riley’s test of Ervin’s arm came up empty when Ervin gunned him down at the plate to kill the threat.

The Reds added an insurance run in their half of the seventh, and Atlanta got a consolation ninth-inning run off the Reds’ bullpen. That made the final score 5-0. Over his seven innings, Gray allowed just three hits.

Cincinnati            011         020         100 – 5 11  1

Atlanta                 000         000         001 – 1   4  0

W: Gray. L. Fried