The Cincinnati Reds pulled off a dramatic comeback at Great American Ball Park on Monday, August 17, 2026, erasing a three-run deficit to beat the St. Louis Cardinals 6-5 in 10 innings on a walk-off home run by Dane Myers. The win, decided in extra innings against a division rival, required the Reds to scratch back from a hole that looked deep enough to swallow the night. Myers delivered the decisive blow, JJ Bleday and Eugenio Suárez each collected three hits, and Emilio Pagán earned the win with a clean 10th inning to close it out.

Reds Rally From Three-Run Deficit to Beat Cardinals in Extra Innings

Cincinnati trailed by three at multiple points in this game and had no business winning it on paper — yet here we are. The Reds scratched and clawed their way back, putting together enough offense against Cardinals starter Andre Pallante and his replacement Peter Strzelecki to force extra innings, then finished the job in the 10th.

Pallante gave St. Louis six innings and held Cincinnati to four runs on 10 hits, striking out five. But 10 hits in six innings is a lot of contact, and the Reds were doing damage. The Cardinals' bullpen couldn't hold the lead once Pallante departed. Strzelecki worked three innings and allowed a run on two hits, and when Justin Bruihl came on in the 10th, he retired no one. Myers sent the first pitch he saw over the wall, and Great American Ball Park erupted.

Bleday and Suárez Lead Cincinnati Offense

You can't tell the story of this game without talking about the top of the Reds' lineup by production. JJ Bleday went 3-for-4 with no RBI — a reminder that not every multi-hit game drives in runs, but Bleday kept putting runners on base all night. Eugenio Suárez matched him with three hits in three at-bats and drove in one run, providing steady, professional at-bats throughout.

Elly De La Cruz added two hits and an RBI in four at-bats, doing what De La Cruz does — staying in the middle of things when Cincinnati needed baserunners.

  • JJ Bleday: 3-for-4, 0 RBI
  • Eugenio Suárez: 3-for-3, 1 RBI
  • Elly De La Cruz: 2-for-4, 1 RBI
  • Dane Myers: 1-for-1, 1 HR, 1 RBI (walk-off)

Rhett Lowder Battles, Bullpen Closes the Door

Rhett Lowder did not have his best stuff Monday. He went 6.2 innings but allowed four earned runs on eight hits, walking two and striking out five. The Cardinals were hitting him hard enough that the outcome felt uncertain through most of the middle innings. Credit Lowder for staying in the game long enough to give the bullpen a manageable situation.

Brock Burke came on in relief and had a bumpy 1.1 innings — three strikeouts, but also a run allowed on two hits. Zach McCambley then delivered a clean inning with two strikeouts and no runs to get Cincinnati into the 10th. Pagán was the closer when it counted: one inning, two strikeouts, no hits allowed, one walk. He stranded the ghost runner and kept the Cardinals off the board, setting the stage for Myers.

St. Louis Had Chances, Couldn't Finish

The Cardinals weren't without their own offensive contributors. Jordan Walker went 3-for-5 and JJ Wetherholt had two hits in five at-bats. Iván Herrera provided St. Louis's most damaging swing with a solo home run. But with all that production, St. Louis couldn't add to its lead late and paid for it in the 10th.

Turning Point: Myers Ends It in the 10th

The turning point of this game is obvious: Dane Myers stepping to the plate with Cincinnati needing a run to win and delivering a walk-off home run against Justin Bruihl. Bruihl recorded zero outs in his appearance. One batter, one swing, ballgame over. It was the kind of moment that defines a win — sudden, clean, and final.

What's Next

The Reds and Cardinals are in the middle of a division series, and Cincinnati just took Monday's game the hard way. The two clubs will pick things back up as this series continues, with Cincinnati looking to build on the momentum of a comeback win in a matchup that carries division-race weight in August.