In honor of the National Baseball Hall of Fame induction festivities taking place in Cooperstown, New York, each team wore a retro-style hat with a Hall of Fame patch on the side. For Cincinnati and Tampa Bay, they donned their hats on July 26. The Reds' hat was blue was a wishbone "C" larger than what they typically wear.

In the bottom of the sixth, Taylor Walls made a costly two-run error to give the Reds the lead. Josh Lowe had a pinch-hit RBI single in the top of the seventh to pull the Rays even at 2.

Elly De La Cruz hit a two-run single in the seventh inning to break open a tie game and the Cincinnati Reds went on to beat the Tampa Bay Rays 6-2.

Martinez went on to say the trade deadline was motivation for the 2025 Reds, who stood at 54-50 after Friday's victory and one game back of the San Diego Padres for the third National League Wild Card.

The Tampa Bay Rays (53-50) and Cincinnati Reds (53-50) open a 3-game series Friday. First pitch from Great American Ball Park is scheduled for 7:10 p.m. ET. Let's analyze BetMGM Sportsbook's MLB odds around the Rays vs. Reds odds and make our expert MLB picks and predictions for the best bets.

Cincinnati Reds pitcher Scott Barlow (58) throws a pitch in the sixth inning of a MLB game between the Cincinnati Reds and Colorado Rockies, Sunday, July 13, 2025, at Great American Ball Park in Downtown Cincinnati. Reds won 4-2. / Frank Bowen IV/The Enquirer / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Elly De La Cruz certainly looks well-equipped for a playoff race. In fact, the Cincinnati Reds all do when they're rolling like they are right now. But it was De La Cruz, as fans chanted his name, who came up big and brought a crowd of 39,

Elly De La Cruz broke a tie with a two-run RBI single in the seventh inning to help the Cincinnati Reds to a 6-2 win against the visiting Tampa Bay Rays on Saturday.

Ryan Pepiot was dealing. The Tampa Bay pitcher has breezed through five scoreless innings, and was about to get through the sixth with a lead