While the talk around Major League Baseball has a lot to do with Reds’ sensation Elly De La Cruz, former Volunteer Nick Senzel carried the team to an extra-innings victory over Washington on Thursday evening.
The Reds and the Nationals were knotted at three runs each heading into the ninth inning. With one out and a man on second base, the Nationals were in a threatening position to walk the game off. Washington shortstop CJ Abrams smoked the first pitch he saw deep to right field. The ball wasn’t far enough, though, and Senzel made a SportsCenter Top 10 worthy play to make the catch crashing into the wall.
The man on second would have ensured that had Senzel not made the incredibly difficult play, the Nationals would have walked it off in their home park.
NICK SENZEL WITH A GAME SAVER! pic.twitter.com/n07NHLT6kA
— Talkin’ Baseball (@TalkinBaseball_) July 6, 2023
The former Farragut Admiral wasn’t done saving the Reds, though.
In the top of the 10th inning, with one man on base in the 3-3 tied game, Senzel took the first pitch he saw deep to left-center for the go-ahead two-run bomb. The extra innings shot was Senzel’s seventh home run on the year.
The two-run homer proved to be invaluable, too. The Nationals retaliated with an infield RBI to bring the game to 5-4 in the bottom of the inning, but couldn’t find that second run to extend the game to the 11th inning.
Senzel proved to not only save the game for the Reds in the outfield, but win the game at the plate as well.
NICK SENZEL IS JUST A WINNING PLAYER pic.twitter.com/SprHlsrxaU
— Barstool Baseball (@StoolBaseball) July 6, 2023
Nick Senzel has played in 60 of the Reds’ 88 games this season as a quality versatile piece that can play both the outfield and the infield as he did on Thursday. Senzel is hitting .241 with 33 RBIs and seven home runs on the season.
The Reds (49-39) are one of Major League Baseball’s hottest teams with a record of 8-2 in the last 10 games. The Reds lead the Milwaukee Brewers by two games in the National League Central standings.
