03/28/24 07:21:00
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03/28 19:19 CDT Martini homers twice, Montas pitches 6 shutout innings and Reds
beat Nationals 8-2 in opener
Martini homers twice, Montas pitches 6 shutout innings and Reds beat Nationals
8-2 in opener
By MITCH STACY
AP Sports Writer
CINCINNATI (AP) --- Nick Martini said he felt a jolt in the Reds' opening day
crowd when he lined his second homer of the afternoon 405 feet into the
right-field stands.
The 33-year-old was in the lineup batting eighth as the designated hitter, the
first opening-day start of his big league career. He responded with a two-run
homer in the second inning and a three-run drive in the third as Cincinnati
cruised to an 8-2 win over the Washington Nationals 8-2 on Thursday.
"I know it's only one game, but it feels good in front of that many fans and
the city," said Martini, the first Reds player to hit two homers on opening day
since Adam Dunn in 2007. "I kind of felt it, especially after the second one. I
kind of just felt how loud it got. It was just awesome."
Frankie Montas pitched six shutout innings in his Cincinnati debut.
Montas (1-0) joined with Reds with a $16 million, one-year deal as a free agent
and the 31-year-old right-hander allowed four hits in six innings, striking out
four and walking none in his 100th career start. He had labrum surgery last
Feb. 21 while with the New York Yankees and made his only big league appearance
of the year on Sept. 30.
"I was just trying to go out there and have fun and just put in a good
performance," Montas said. "I know what I can do when I'm healthy. People know
what I can do when I'm healthy. This is a healthy Frankie Montas. This is a
healthy version of me. So I'm just trying to enjoy every part of it."
Martini is playing with his fourth major league team since 2018 and got the
opportunity Thursday because of spring training injuries to TJ Friedl and Matt
McClain. He hit a first-pitch slider out to right in the second inning and
lined a 2-1 cutter into the same neighborhood the next inning.
"We've known this guy can hit, so for it to all come out opening day and his
first one, which us surprising or shocking when you think about it because this
guy has been a good player for a long time," Reds manager David Bell said. "We
saw a pretty good sample of what he is able to do and why he is good."
Spencer Steer had two hits and two RBIs for Cincinnati.
Josiah Gray (0-1) matched his career high by allowing seven runs, giving up
eight hits in four innings with six strikeouts and two walks.
Eddie Rosario, making his Nationals debut after being added to the major league
roster, hit a two-run homer in the seventh against Emilio Pagn.
"We need to come back strong," Nationals manager Dave Martinez said. "Opening
day is always weird. A lot of adrenaline. We chased a lot of pitches. We didn't
do that in the spring."
UP NEXT
Lefty Patrick Corbin is scheduled to start for the Nationals against Reds
right-hander Hunter Greene as the series continues on Saturday.
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