Reds Beat the Marlins to Take Game 1 — Cincinnati Wins Four Straight and Miami’s Offense Filed a Missing Persons Report

Final: Reds 2, Marlins 0

The Reds walked into loanDepot park, looked around, and said, “Cute stadium. Shame if someone… shut you out.” Cincinnati takes Game 1, makes it four straight wins, and sends the Marlins lineup back to the dugout like it forgot its password.

No chaos. No panic. Just a clean, road-grown win with the energy of a team that’s quietly hot and a little bit petty about it.

Brandon Williamson: “New Phone, Who Dis?”

Brandon Williamson was dealing like he had dinner reservations and didn’t plan on being late:

• 6.2 IP, 3 H, 0 ER, 4 K, 1 BB

Miami tried everything—contact, patience, vibes, positive affirmations. Nothing worked. The Marlins’ best moment was an Agustín Ramírez triple in the 6th… which immediately turned into a whole lot of nothing, because Williamson slammed the door like he heard someone say “free agency.”

Elly Doubles, Stewart Cashes It — The Reds Score Like Adults

The Reds finally broke through in the 4th, and it started with the usual warning label:

• Elly De La Cruz doubled (because speed plus violence is a strategy)

• Sal Stewart singled home Elly for 1-0

Miami also tossed in a throwing error by J. Sanoja, which was very generous of them—like tipping 20% on a meal you didn’t enjoy.

Tyler Stephenson Adds Insurance: “Let’s Stop Playing With Our Food”

In the 8th, Tyler Stephenson decided one run was too close for comfort and launched a solo shot to left:

• Stephenson HR (376 ft)

• 2-0 Reds

That ball left the park so fast it should’ve been charged baggage fees.

Bullpen: Three Guys, One Message — “No.”

After Williamson, the bullpen came in and turned the game into a formality:

• Burke: quick out, no drama (0.1 IP)

• Santillan: handled business (1.0 IP)

• Emilio Pagán: closed it like a man shutting the fridge after you’ve stared into it for the 9th time (1.0 IP)

Pagán’s line:

• 1.0 IP, 0 H, 0 ER (Save #4)

Miami’s ninth inning was so quiet you could hear someone in the stands asking, “Wait… are we still hitting?”

Next Game: Probable Pitchers (Game 2)

Cincinnati Reds: Andrew Abbott (LHP, #41)

Abbott’s rolling in with the classic early-season stat line that screams “small sample size, don’t get weird about it”… but also “please score a run or two, thanks.”

Miami Marlins: Sandy Alcantara (RHP, #22)

Alcantara’s on the mound for Miami, which means the Marlins are basically saying, “Alright, enough jokes—bring out the big dog.”

Matchup Predictor (ESPN Analytics)

• Reds: 41.7%

• Marlins: 58.3%

So the computers like Miami. That’s fine. Computers also thought people wanted the Apple Newton.

Quick Hit Leaders to Know

Home Runs

• Reds: Elly De La Cruz — 3 HR

• Marlins: Liam Hicks — 3 HR

Batting Average

• Reds: Sal Stewart — .367 AVG

• Marlins: Xavier Edwards — .471 AVG

RBIs

• Reds: Eugenio Suárez — 7 RBI

• Marlins: Liam Hicks — 12 RBI

First pitch: Tue 4/7/26, 6:40 PM ET at loanDepot park.

Toss Boss Outro

Game 1 goes to Cincinnati, and the Reds are rolling like they found a cheat code labeled “Pitching + Timely Dingers.” Miami’s going to need more than sunshine and a cool ballpark name to flip this series—because right now the Reds are handing out zeros like they’re on clearance.

On to Game 2. Keep the brooms nearby. Not saying we’re sweeping… I’m just saying I’ve seen less obvious foreshadowing in a Disney movie.