Suárez Plays Hero as Reds Stay Hot, Down Cardinals 4-2 in Series Opener

One big swing was all the Reds needed. Suárez delivered.

Jul 24, 2026; St. Louis, Missouri, USA; Cincinnati Reds third baseman Eugenio Suarez (28) celebrates with first baseman Sal Stewart (27) after hitting a two run home run against the St. Louis Cardinals during the seventh inning at Busch Stadium. | Jeff Curry-Imagn Images

On a night where the Reds largely failed to take advantage of their scoring opportunities, Rhett Lowder's great showing and Eugenio Suárez's go-ahead home run in the seventh inning lifted Cincinnati to an important 4-2 win over the Cardinals on Friday night.

Here are some takeaways from the Reds' series-opening win at Busch Stadium:

Geno Delivers the Big Hit

Jul 24, 2026; St. Louis, Missouri, USA; Cincinnati Reds third baseman Eugenio Suarez (28) hits a two run home run against the St. Louis Cardinals during the seventh inning at Busch Stadium. | Jeff Curry-Imagn Images

After breaking the scoreless tie in the fourth and then losing the lead in the fifth, it looked to be yet another game the Reds would drop by leaving a bunch of runners on base and failing to get a clutch hit. However, that thought was put to rest in the seventh when Eugenio Suárez hit a two-run shot to vault the Reds back ahead 3-2.

It was the timely swing Cincinnati desperately needed after squandering several scoring opportunities earlier in the game, and it ultimately proved to be the difference.

Lowder Has Solid Outing, Loses No-Hit Bid in Fifth

Jul 24, 2026; St. Louis, Missouri, USA; Cincinnati Reds starting pitcher Rhett Lowder (25) throws against the St. Louis Cardinals during the first inning at Busch Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Curry-Imagn Images | Jeff Curry-Imagn Images

Coming off a disastrous start against the Rockies in which he allowed eight runs in 2 1/3 innings, Lowder bounced back in a big way against St. Louis, striking out four and allowing zero hits in his first four innings.

But in baseball, the margins are thin and a couple of mistakes can cause a stellar performance to evaporate and cost a team the lead. Unfortunately, that happened to Lowder in the fifth. After hitting Ivan Herrera by a pitch earlier in the frame, Blaze Jordan clubbed a two-run double into left-center field to give St. Louis a 2-1 lead, ending Lowder's no-hit bid.

All things considered, it was likely as good a start as Lowder could have had given how his last outing went, even if the final line didn't fully reflect how sharp he was in the early going. It serves as an encouraging sign for both him and the Reds moving forward.

Bottom of Order Continues to be Bright Spot

Dustin May cruised through the first three innings, allowing just two hits and striking out five. When he finally ran into trouble in the fourth, the bottom of the Reds lineup was able to take advantage as Tyler Stephenson knocked a ground-rule double into the Cardinals bullpen to give the Reds a 1-0 lead.

Coming into tonight's contest, Cincinnati's 7-8-9 hitters had sported a .339 average since the All-Star break, good for second-best in the majors. They continued to show promise tonight as they recorded three of the Reds' eleven hits.

Although the offense struggled to cash in with runners in scoring position for most of the night, consistent production for the bottom of the order is an encouraging development moving forward.

Up Next

Cincinnati continues its series with the Cardinals tomorrow night as Hunter Greene (2-1, 6.06 ERA) goes up against Andre Pallante (10-6, 4.02 ERA). First pitch is scheduled for 7:15 p.m. as Greene looks to earn his third straight quality start.

The game will air on Reds.TV and 700 WLW.