CINCINNATI — In his return from the injured list, Cincinnati Reds shortstop Elly De La Cruz watched from the on-deck circle as leadoff man Blake Dunn flew out to center against Milwaukee Brewers closer Trevor Megill to finish off a 2-0 Brewers victory.
De La Cruz was 0-for-3 with two strikeouts in his first big-league game since May 31, when he suffered a strained right hamstring. The fact that De La Cruz, batting in the two-hole, got just three plate appearances tells the team’s offensive story. For the second night in a row, a Reds catcher broke up a no-hit bid in the sixth inning, and the offense managed just one more hit afterward.
In the series opener Monday, the Reds had just two hits and lost 2-1 in 10 innings.
Again, the margin of error was perhaps a small misplay that may otherwise go unnoticed but wasn’t covered up with offensive output.
The Brewers’ first run came in the sixth inning when first baseman Andrew Vaughn — the slowest non-catcher on the Milwaukee roster, according to Statcast sprint speed data — scored from first base on what was officially ruled a triple by Brewers right fielder Jake Bauers (the second-slowest non-catcher on Milwaukee’s roster, according to Statcast sprint speed data).
