Anthony Rizzo’s tie-breaking, walk-off homer that opened the ninth inning gave the Cubs a 1-0 win over the Reds and spoiled a strong start from Alfredo Simon on Monday night at Wrigley Field.
Rizzo, who had struck out twice against Simon in his first two at-bats, sent a 92-mph fastball to center field off Pedro Villarreal in his return from an 18-game hiatus due to lower back stiffness.
“It was a mistake that Rizzo took advantage of,” Cincinnati manager Bryan Price said. “[Rizzo] looked a little rusty the first couple of at-bats, then he had the infield hit, and certainly is always a dangerous hitter. But it’s typically going to be a simple mistake or someone taking advantage of something in a [tie] game like that’s going to be the deciding factor.”
The Cubs’ slugger homered in his second straight game against the Reds, dating back to Aug. 26 when he belted his 30th before leaving due to the back problems that had sidelined him since until Monday.
Simon turned in his first shutout performance of the second half, hoping for a fruitful finish to his first full season in the Reds’ rotation — one that included his first All-Star Game appearance.
“I want to show them that I can be a starter for a long time here,” said Simon, who threw seven scoreless innings with five hits, a walk and three strikeouts. “I try to finish strong.”
Simon went seven innings for the third time in four starts, including Wednesday’s 4-2 win over the Cardinals, just his second in 12 starts since the All-Star break.
Before that, he was 1-7 with a 5.27 ERA and .297 average against in the second half, prompting questions about his durability — his 178 1/3 innings tally entering Monday far surpassed his previous high of 115 2/3 set in 2011 with Baltimore.
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