Carlos Santana's grand slam powers the Guardians past the Reds 11-2 on June 12, 2025. See how the former Red spoiled the Ohio Cup finale for Cincinnati.
StatPro MLB Beat Reporter
Well, you can't win 'em all. After clinching the Ohio Cup with authority, the Cincinnati Reds ran into a buzzsaw named Carlos Santana on Thursday, suffering a lopsided 11-2 defeat to the Cleveland Guardians. A painful grand slam from the former Red was the knockout blow in a game the Cincy faithful will want to forget quickly.
In a game short on highlights, Elly De La Cruz was a bright spot for Cincinnati, going 2-for-4 with an RBI.
The game completely unraveled on one swing. With the bases loaded, former Reds fan-favorite Carlos Santana stepped to the plate and delivered a dagger—a grand slam that blew the game wide open. It was a tough outing all around for the pitching staff, with starter Nick Lodolo taking the loss and falling to 4-5 on the season. The bullpen couldn't stop the bleeding, ultimately allowing 11 runs. While the Reds had already secured the season series and the Ohio Cup for the first time since 2014, watching Santana celebrate at their expense was a particularly tough way to end the matchup.
If you're looking for a silver lining, look no further than Elly De La Cruz. The dynamic shortstop was one of the few Reds hitters to solve Cleveland's pitching, collecting two of the team's hits and driving in one of their two runs. His 2-for-4 day nudged his batting average up to .261, reinforcing his status as a consistent offensive threat even when the rest of the lineup goes quiet. On a day where runs were scarce, Elly's performance was a reminder of the star power at the top of the order.
The Reds did get a piece of good news with the return of Jonathan India to the lineup. After missing a game with right quad tightness, India was back in the DH spot, going 0-for-3 with a walk. While he didn't light up the box score, his presence adds crucial depth. Unfortunately, his return wasn't enough to spark the offense, which struggled to get anything going all afternoon, managing just the two runs. Getting India back to full strength and finding consistent production beyond Elly will be key moving forward.
This one stings, no doubt about it. A blowout loss to your in-state rival is never fun, but let's not lose sight of the bigger picture: the Ohio Cup is back in Cincinnati. The team will have to flush this performance, get some rest, and come back ready to fire on all cylinders for the next series. The bats need to wake up and the pitching needs a reset, but one bad game doesn't erase the progress they've made. On to the next one.
