Cincinnati Reds' Will Benson Extends League Lead With Another Clutch Home Run
Will Benson delivered his sixth ninth-inning home run since the start of 2023 in the Cincinnati Reds' comeback win over the Washington Nationals on Sunday.
It may have been youngster Christian Encarnacion-Strand who delivered a historic walk-off home run for the Cincinnati Reds on Sunday, but they wouldn't have been in that position to begin with if it weren't for outfielder Will Benson.
With two down in the bottom of the ninth inning, Benson stepped up to the plate with a man on second. The Reds were trailing the Washington Nationals 5-3 at the time, and their win probability was sitting at 4.6%, even after Jonathan India's two-out double.
Benson flipped the script on the very first pitch he saw, crushing a high splitter and sending it 411 feet to center.
When Benson came around to touch home plate, the score was tied, and Cincinnati was suddenly favored to win. That's exactly what they went on to do, as Encarnacion-Strand went back-to-back with Benson to walk it off.
It wasn't the first time Benson came through in the clutch, either. Since the start of the 2023 season, Benson leads all MLB players with six home runs in the ninth inning.
The first home run Benson ever hit in the big leagues was a ninth-inning, walk-off solo shot against the Los Angeles Dodgers on June 7, 2023. He hit another home run in the ninth inning two weeks later against the Atlanta Braves, then three more on July 25, Aug. 25 and Sept. 6.
Of the 12 home runs Benson has hit across 139 MLB appearances, half of them have come in the ninth inning. The Reds are 8-4 when the 25-year-old homers, although just 3-3 when he does so in the ninth.
Benson enjoyed a breakout 2023 campaign, right after the Cleveland Guardians traded him to Cincinnati in exchange for a player to be named later. He hit .275 with an .863 OPS across 108 games last year, and he is batting .417 with a 1.378 OPS through three games this season.
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