CINCINNATI (Interstat) — Noelvi Marte hit a solo home run in the eighth inning to lift the Cincinnati Reds to a 2-1 victory over the Arizona Diamondbacks on Saturday afternoon at Great American Ball Park. The Reds evened the three-game series after dropping the opener 5-2 Friday. Arizona took a 1-0 lead in the first inning, but Cincinnati tied it in the third when Edwin Arroyo singled home Matt McLain. Marte then connected off Arizona reliever Juan Morillo in the eighth for the decisive run. Reds starter Rhett Lowder pitched 5 2/3 innings, allowing one earned run on five hits with six strikeouts. Chase Petty earned the win with 1 2/3 scoreless innings, and Tony Santillan recorded his third save with a perfect ninth. Morillo (1-3) took the loss. Despite outhitting Cincinnati 7-3, the Diamondbacks (35-35) could not produce further runs. The Reds improved to 33-36. Attendance was 27,563, and the game lasted 2 hours, 22 minutes.

CINCINNATI (Interstat) — Noelvi Marte hit a tiebreaking solo home run in the bottom of the eighth inning, lifting the Cincinnati Reds to a 2-1 victory over the Arizona Diamondbacks on Saturday evening at Great American Ball Park. The win evened the three-game series at one game apiece after the Diamondbacks won the opener 5-2 on Friday. Cincinnati improved to 33-36, while Arizona fell to 35-35. The game lasted 2 hours, 22 minutes before an announced crowd of 27,563. Arizona struck first in the top of the first inning. Corbin Carroll led off the game with a home run to right-center field, his 12th of the season, giving the Diamondbacks a quick 1-0 lead. Ketel Marte had grounded out to second baseman Matt McLain to start the inning, but Carroll’s drive cleared the wall for the only run the Diamondbacks would score. Gabriel Moreno lined out, Nolan Arenado walked and Pavin Smith popped out foul to end the inning. The Reds answered in the third. Two strikeouts began the inning, but McLain doubled sharply to left field. Edwin Arroyo followed with a line-drive single to right field, scoring McLain and tying the game at 1-1. JJ Bleday flied out to left to strand Arroyo. Both starting pitchers settled in after that. Arizona starter Michael Soroka retired the Reds in order in the second and fourth innings, while Cincinnati starter Rhett Lowder worked through the Arizona lineup with efficiency. Lowder turned in a strong outing, allowing five hits and one earned run over 5.2 innings while striking out six. He left the game after the sixth inning with the score still tied. Arizona threatened in the top of the seventh. Ryan Waldschmidt led off with a lineout, but Ketel Marte drew a walk. Carroll singled to put runners at first and second. Gabriel Moreno was hit by a pitch to load the bases with one out. Nolan Arenado struck out swinging, and Pavin Smith flied out to right, leaving the bases loaded. In the bottom of the eighth, the Reds broke the deadlock. Eugenio Suárez struck out looking to start the inning. Marte then homered to left-center field, his second home run of the season, putting Cincinnati ahead 2-1. Tyler Stephenson struck out swinging, and McLain also struck out swinging to end the inning. Arizona went quietly in the top of the ninth. Carroll grounded out to second, Moreno grounded out to shortstop, and Arenado grounded out to shortstop to end the game. Chase Petty earned the win for Cincinnati, improving to 1-1. He pitched 1.2 innings, allowing one hit, no runs and striking out one. Tony Santillan recorded his third save of the season with a perfect ninth inning, striking out one. Juan Morillo took the loss for Arizona, falling to 1-3. Rhett Lowder was the story of the game for the Reds, keeping the Diamondbacks offense in check despite allowing five hits and a run. He struck out six and walked one. For Arizona, Corbin Carroll had two hits, including the home run, and scored the only run. Ketel Marte also had two singles and drew a walk. Gabriel Moreno doubled and had two hits. Ryan Waldschmidt doubled in the eighth but was left stranded. For Cincinnati, Noelvi Marte went 1-for-3 with the decisive home run and one RBI. Matt McLain doubled and scored a run. Edwin Arroyo had a single and an RBI. The Diamondbacks outhit the Reds 7-3, but could not muster a second run. Arizona had a golden opportunity in the seventh inning when they loaded the bases with one out, but Nolan Arenado struck out and Pavin Smith flied out to end the threat. The game featured a controversial call in the top of the fourth inning when Tyler Stephenson, the Reds catcher, challenged a pitch result on an Adrian Del Castillo strikeout. The call on the field was overturned, and Del Castillo was called out on strikes. Cincinnati’s bullpen was effective after Lowder left the game. Caleb Ferguson pitched 0.2 innings, allowing one hit and no runs while striking out one. Petty then entered and worked through the seventh and eighth innings, allowing only one hit. The Reds’ defense also contributed, with second baseman Matt McLain turning a double play in the first inning to erase a baserunner. Arizona’s Soroka pitched six innings, allowing one run on three hits while striking out six and walking none. He matched Lowder through six innings but did not factor in the decision. The Diamondbacks have now lost two of their last three games after winning the series opener Friday. The Reds snapped a three-game losing streak with the victory. Both teams are scheduled to meet again Sunday afternoon for the series finale at Great American Ball Park. Arizona will then return home for a six-game homestand against the Los Angeles Angels and Minnesota Twins. Cincinnati will host the New York Mets for a three-game series starting Monday. The game was a pitchers’ duel for much of the afternoon, with both starters working efficiently and keeping hitters off balance. The only runs came on Carroll’s leadoff homer and Arroyo’s RBI single in the third, followed by Marte’s solo shot in the eighth. No other players recorded multiple hits for either team. Arizona’s Tommy Troy went 0-for-4 but reached on an error in the eighth. Cincinnati’s Nathaniel Lowe went 0-for-3, and Tyler Stephenson went 0-for-3 with three strikeouts. The game marked the first time this season that Arizona scored one run or fewer in a game that was decided by one run. The Diamondbacks have now lost nine of their last 13 games overall. Cincinnati improved to 18-17 at home, while Arizona fell to 16-20 on the road. The Reds’ bullpen has now recorded saves in three consecutive games, with Santillan earning his third of the season. The game’s decisive moment came in the eighth inning when Noelvi Marte turned on a pitch and sent it over the left-center field wall, breaking a 1-1 tie and sending the home crowd into a frenzy. The Arizona defense played the inning cleanly but could not prevent the solo blast. Arizona’s offense struggled to generate consistent pressure after the first inning. The Diamondbacks had runners on base in the third, fifth, seventh and eighth innings but left seven runners stranded overall. Cincinnati’s pitching staff held Arizona to 1-for-9 with runners in scoring position. The Reds’ victory in a low-scoring affair highlighted the effectiveness of their pitching staff, which has been inconsistent this season but showed resilience on Saturday. Cincinnati’s lineup, despite only three hits, managed to score two runs, taking advantage of a double and a single in the third inning and a home run in the eighth. Arizona’s defense recorded no errors, but the offense could not capitalize on its 10 base runners, including eight hits and two walks. The game was the 10th time this season that the Diamondbacks scored two or fewer runs. Interstat’s game simulator had projected a final score of Arizona Diamondbacks 4, Cincinnati Reds 3. Interstat’s ELO system had projected Arizona with a 51.30 percent probability to win. Arizona had been installed as a pregame favorite with a spread of -1.5. The total score of 3 went over the over/under line of 9.

Diamondbacks at Reds Preview CINCINNATI (Interstat) — The Arizona Diamondbacks and Cincinnati Reds continue their three-game series Saturday evening at Great American Ball Park, with first pitch scheduled for 7:10 p.m. EDT under cloudy skies and 82 degrees. Arizona (34-34) will hand the ball to right-hander Michael Soroka (8-3), while Cincinnati (32-35) counters with right-hander Rhett Lowder (3-3). The Reds took the series opener 2-1 on Friday night. Soroka has been the Diamondbacks’ most reliable starter, but the team arrives in Cincinnati after a three-game sweep at Miami, including a 2-0 loss Thursday. Right-hander Merrill Kelly, who started that game and allowed two earned runs over six innings with one strikeout, has struggled in recent outings. Over his past five starts, Kelly is 2-3 with a 5.22 ERA, including a rough outing June 5 against Washington when he allowed seven earned runs in five innings. Lowder takes the mound for Cincinnati after the Reds dropped two of three at San Diego. The rookie right-hander has been inconsistent, posting a 4.50 ERA over his past two starts, including a loss June 10 at San Diego in which he allowed two earned runs over six innings with five strikeouts. Reds infielder Spencer Steer has been productive recently, going 1 for 5 with a home run and two RBIs in Wednesday’s 5-4 loss to the Padres. The Diamondbacks have lost four of their past six games, while the Reds have dropped four of their past five. Interstat’s game simulator projects a 4-3 Arizona victory. The Diamondbacks are installed as pregame favorites with a spread of minus-1.5. The over/under is 9. After Saturday’s contest, the teams conclude the series Sunday afternoon. The Diamondbacks then return home for a six-game homestand against the Los Angeles Angels and Minnesota Twins. The Reds host the New York Mets for three games beginning Monday.