The Cincinnati Reds earned their first win of the 2026 season on Saturday.The 6-5 victory over the Boston Red Sox came down to the wire in a thriller that extended late through two extra innings.After previously struggling to get their offense going during Opening Day, the Reds would prove to be the first to get on the board early on Saturday after Sal Stewart and Eugenio Suárez each hit RBIs in the first inning to respectively allow TJ Friedl and Matt McLain to reach home plate.In the second inning, the Reds would then quickly go on to extend this lead with a third RBI hit by Matt McLain that allowed Ke’Bryan Hayes to reach home plate, giving the Reds an early 3-0 lead.However, Boston would soon afterward get their first run on the board in the third inning after the Red Sox’s Trevor Story hit a home run past left field off of Reds starting pitcher Brady Singer.In the bottom of the third, the Reds would then almost immediately respond with a home run of their own — the first hit by Cincinnati this season — that was hit just shy of 400 feet past center field by rookie Sal Stewart.In the next inning, a single by the Red Sox’s Ceddanne Rafaela, and later, a wild pitch thrown by Singer, would allow Boston to come back within striking distance of the Reds, with Cincinnati standing at a 4-3 lead by the end of the fourth inning.However, in the fifth inning, it would be Elly De La Cruz who would go on to score the Reds’ second home run of the season, once again extending Cincinnati’s lead over Boston with an additional run.As Cincinnati’s offense proceeded to go quiet late in the game, Wilyer Abreu stepped up to come to the rescue for the Red Sox, scoring a double in the seventh inning that allowed Jarren Duran to score. Abreu would then hit a pivotal home run in the ninth inning as Boston stared down defeat, bringing the game to a 5-5 tie and sending the game into extra innings at Great American Ball Park.After an uneventful 10th inning, ultimately it would be Dane Myers — who was only acquired by the Reds in December from the Miami Marlins — who would go on to hit a single in the 11th inning to allow TJ Friedl to score.This now brings Cincinnati to an early 1-1 record as the Reds begin the 2026 season, with one game left against Boston to determine the winner of the series.The win also marks a forceful turnaround for the Reds just two days after the team lost in their Opening Day matchup with the Red Sox in a 3-0 shutout that saw Cincinnati’s offense unable to put up any runs on the board.Notably, Saturday’s game also saw heavy use of a newly introduced feature to Major League Baseball: pitch challenging. In total, eight different pitches were challenged, with the Reds successfully overturning all five of the pitches that Cincinnati challenged. In contrast, the Red Sox successfully overturned one pitch, but failed to do so on two others.Under the new MLB rules, each team is awarded two pitch challenges per game. However, a pitch challenge is retained if the challenge is successful.As a result, the game saw Red Sox manager Alex Cora ejected in the eighth inning after persistently arguing a call with the game’s umpire after Boston had run out of challenges.The final game of the series between the two teams will be played on Sunday at Great American Ball Park at 1:40 p.m. On Monday, Cincinnati will then host the Pittsburgh Pirates to start their second series of the season.

CINCINNATI —

The Cincinnati Reds earned their first win of the 2026 season on Saturday.

The 6-5 victory over the Boston Red Sox came down to the wire in a thriller that extended late through two extra innings.

After previously struggling to get their offense going during Opening Day, the Reds would prove to be the first to get on the board early on Saturday after Sal Stewart and Eugenio Suárez each hit RBIs in the first inning to respectively allow TJ Friedl and Matt McLain to reach home plate.

In the second inning, the Reds would then quickly go on to extend this lead with a third RBI hit by Matt McLain that allowed Ke’Bryan Hayes to reach home plate, giving the Reds an early 3-0 lead.

However, Boston would soon afterward get their first run on the board in the third inning after the Red Sox’s Trevor Story hit a home run past left field off of Reds starting pitcher Brady Singer.

In the bottom of the third, the Reds would then almost immediately respond with a home run of their own — the first hit by Cincinnati this season — that was hit just shy of 400 feet past center field by rookie Sal Stewart.

In the next inning, a single by the Red Sox’s Ceddanne Rafaela, and later, a wild pitch thrown by Singer, would allow Boston to come back within striking distance of the Reds, with Cincinnati standing at a 4-3 lead by the end of the fourth inning.

However, in the fifth inning, it would be Elly De La Cruz who would go on to score the Reds’ second home run of the season, once again extending Cincinnati’s lead over Boston with an additional run.

As Cincinnati’s offense proceeded to go quiet late in the game, Wilyer Abreu stepped up to come to the rescue for the Red Sox, scoring a double in the seventh inning that allowed Jarren Duran to score. Abreu would then hit a pivotal home run in the ninth inning as Boston stared down defeat, bringing the game to a 5-5 tie and sending the game into extra innings at Great American Ball Park.

After an uneventful 10th inning, ultimately it would be Dane Myers — who was only acquired by the Reds in December from the Miami Marlins — who would go on to hit a single in the 11th inning to allow TJ Friedl to score.

This now brings Cincinnati to an early 1-1 record as the Reds begin the 2026 season, with one game left against Boston to determine the winner of the series.

The win also marks a forceful turnaround for the Reds just two days after the team lost in their Opening Day matchup with the Red Sox in a 3-0 shutout that saw Cincinnati’s offense unable to put up any runs on the board.

Notably, Saturday’s game also saw heavy use of a newly introduced feature to Major League Baseball: pitch challenging. In total, eight different pitches were challenged, with the Reds successfully overturning all five of the pitches that Cincinnati challenged. In contrast, the Red Sox successfully overturned one pitch, but failed to do so on two others.

Under the new MLB rules, each team is awarded two pitch challenges per game. However, a pitch challenge is retained if the challenge is successful.

As a result, the game saw Red Sox manager Alex Cora ejected in the eighth inning after persistently arguing a call with the game’s umpire after Boston had run out of challenges.

The final game of the series between the two teams will be played on Sunday at Great American Ball Park at 1:40 p.m. On Monday, Cincinnati will then host the Pittsburgh Pirates to start their second series of the season.