INSTANT REACTION: Reds Rally Twice With Two Outs, Beat Twins 6-5

CINCINNATI -- In a back-and-forth interleague battle on Tuesday night, the Reds scored all six of their runs with two outs in the fourth and sixth innings for a 6-5 win over the Minnesota Twins.

The win moves the Reds to three games over .500, tied for a season-high, at 38-35.

This game had many twists and turns. Let's look at them in tonight's takeaways from the Reds' 6-5 win over the Twins.

Bottom of the sixth rally from the bottom of the order

With two outs in the bottom of the sixth and the Reds trailing 5-4, No. 8 hitter Jake Fraley lined a two-out single to keep the inning alive.

Second baseman Matt McLain followed with a single to put two on with two outs.

In the midst of what’s been an All-Star caliber first half, Reds' center fielder and lead off hitter TJ Friedl hit a looper to right that bounced off Twins right fielder Willi Castro’s glove and drove in both Fraley and McLain to give the Reds a 6-5 lead.

The rally speaks to the resilience of this Reds team. After letting a 4-1 lead slip away in the top of the sixth, the bottom of the Reds order swung the game right back into the Reds favor and did it all with two outs.

If the Reds continue to get production from the bottom of their order, that’s only going to make it harder for opposing pitchers to face the Reds lineup.

Christian Encarnacion-Strand’s costly error in the sixth

Costly is an understatement, at least it was at the time. With two outs, Encarnacion-Strand threw wide to first on a ground ball. It would have been the final out of the inning. Instead, bad things happen when you give any team life.

The next three batters for the Twins all reached, including Twins left fielder Harrison Bader hitting a three-run home-run that just cleared Reds right fielder Jake Fraley’s glove. It gave the Twins a 5-4 lead, erasing and flipping a 4-1 deficit.

Even though the Reds were up 4-1 when Encarnacion-Strand threw wide of first with two outs in the sixth, it ended up being a costly error. While Encarnacion-Strand showed flashes against Arizona that he could be the long-term third baseman for the Reds, he still has a ways to go defensively. Defense is a big part of playing the hot corner.

Reds two-out rally in the fourth

This was a really impressive rally by the Reds. With runners on first and second and a full count, left fielder Will Benson stayed through the middle of the plate and roped a two-run double all the way to the wall in left center field.

It was the Reds first hit of the game, and it gave them a 2-1 lead. But they weren’t done rallying with two outs.

The next batter, first baseman, Spencer Steer, appeared to have struck out swinging. But the ball got away from Twins catcher Ryan Jeffers, allowing Steer to hustle to first base safely.

Jeffers’s dropped third strike proved costly. After Steer stole second base, Fraley singled to right to drive home Benson and Steer and extend the Reds lead to 4-1.

Impressively, the Reds had only one extra base hit and two total in their two-out rally. Two walks, a double and a single produced four runs and completely flipped the game in the Reds favor.

That’s a fun brand of baseball. Get them on base and get them in. The Reds showed they didn’t need power in the fourth inning Tuesday night to produce four runs.

A shutdown effort by the Reds bullpen

Do not overlook this from Tuesday night's win. The Reds bullpen held the Twins scoreless for the final 3 1/3 innings after Bader's home run gave them the lead.

Scott Barlow, who got the win Tuesday night, pitched a perfect 1 1/3 innings with two strikeouts. Tony Santillan pitched shutout innings in the eighth and ninth, respectively, to nail down the win.

Talk about grit. That's what the Reds bullpen showed on Tuesday night. After Minnesota scored four runs with two outs in the top of the sixth, the game could have gotten away from the Reds. It didn't, thanks to the Reds bullpen.

Notes and observations

• Cincinnati is now 8-10 in one-run games.
• Minnesota is 7-13 in one-run games
• The Reds went 3-7 with runners in scoring position with nine runners left on base.
• The Twins were 2-4 with runners in scoring position and left six runners on base.

On deck

The Reds can win the series Wednesday night when they send left-handed pitcher Nick Lodolo (4-5, 3.76 ERA) to the mound against Twins right-hander Bailey Ober (4-3, 4.40 ERA)