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Cincinnati Reds Sweep New York Yankees After Winning Pregame Standoff

The Cincinnati Reds outlasted the New York Yankees in a pregame standoff after the National Anthem, then went on to complete the sweep of the Bronx Bombers on Thursday.
Sam Connon|
Jul 4, 2024; Bronx, New York, USA; Cincinnati Reds second baseman Jonathan India (6) gestures after hitting a solo home run in the third inning against the New York Yankees at Yankee Stadium.
Jul 4, 2024; Bronx, New York, USA; Cincinnati Reds second baseman Jonathan India (6) gestures after hitting a solo home run in the third inning against the New York Yankees at Yankee Stadium. | Wendell Cruz-USA TODAY Sports

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Cincinnati RedsNew York Yankees

Before the game even started, the Cincinnati Reds bested the New York Yankees.

The two teams started a battle of wills following the singing of the National Anthem at Yankee Stadium, seeing which side could stay out on the field longer. Eventually, Yankees manager Aaron Boone waved his side back into the dugout, handing the Reds the moral victory.

That may have set the tone for the afternoon, considering Cincinnati never once trailed in the Independence Day showdown.

The Reds' dominance started in the top of the third inning, when second baseman Jonathan India took starting pitcher Marcus Stroman deep for a two-run home run. Cincinnati's lead more than doubled when Stroman gave up a three-run homer to first baseman Spencer Steer in the top of the fifth.

New York answered with a pair of solo home runs in the bottom of the bottom half of the inning, courtesy of catcher Austin Wells and first baseman Ben Rice. Right fielder Jake Fraley erased that progress with a bases-clearing, three-RBI triple in the top of the seventh, however.

Juan Soto's two-run home run in the bottom of the seventh didn't do much besides make the final score look a little nicer, as the Yankees lost 8-4 regardless.

Fans had already been on Boone's case after breaking up the pregame faceoff, and he didn't do much for his case by managing his team to a loss in the actual competition that counted. On top of that, the result clinched a sweep for the Reds, dropping the Yankees to 4-13 since June 15.

The Yankees are now 4-4 on the Fourth of July since 2016, while the Reds are 6-1 since 2017.

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Sam Connon
SAM CONNON

Sam Connon is a staff writer covering baseball for “Fastball on SI.’’ He previously covered UCLA Athletics for On SI’s All Bruins site, and is a UCLA graduate, with his work there as a sports columnist receiving awards from the College Media Association and Society of Professional Journalists. Connon also wrote for On SI’s New England Patriots site, Patriots Country, and he was on the Patriots and Boston Red Sox beats at Prime Time Sports Talk. Sam lives in Boston.

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