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Cincinnati Reds Outfielder Joins Hall of Famer in Fun Birthday History on Wednesday

Happy birthday to Reds outfielder TJ Friedl indeed!

Brady Farkas

Cincinnati Reds outfielder TJ Friedl (29) hits a solo home run in the fifth inning against the St. Louis Cardinals at Great American Ball Park on Aug 14.
Cincinnati Reds outfielder TJ Friedl (29) hits a solo home run in the fifth inning against the St. Louis Cardinals at Great American Ball Park on Aug 14. / Katie Stratman-USA TODAY Sports
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The Cincinnati Reds roughed up the St. Louis Cardinals on Wednesday night by a score of 9-2. With the win, the Reds are now 60-61 on the season. As they work back toward .500, they are also now just 4.5 games back of the third and final wild card spot in the National League.

In the win, the Reds got a big night from outfielder TJ Friedl, who went 2-for-4 with two home runs and two RBI. He also scored two runs. The home runs were his eighth and ninth of the season, and they just so happened to come on his 29th birthday.

According to Sarah Langs of MLB.com, those blasts put him in a little fun history alongside Hall of Famer Barry Larkin.

TJ Friedl is the second Reds player since at least 1901 with a multi-HR game on his birthday, joining:

4/28/94 Barry Larkin

birthdays are important

Friedl has had an injury-plagued year for Cincinnati, only getting 159 at-bats thus far. He's got the nine homers, 33 RBI and is sporting a .747 OPS.

Lifetime, he's a .261 hitter with 36 home runs. He made his major league debut in 2021 and played his college ball at Nevada.

The Reds will be off on Thursday before starting another critical weekend series against the Kansas City Royals, who are in playoff position themselves in the American League.

First pitch on Friday is set for 6:40 p.m. ET as Michael Lorenzen (KC) goes up against veteran right-hander Nick Martinez. He's 6-5 this year with a 3.16 ERA.

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Brady Farkas

BRADY FARKAS

Brady Farkas is a baseball writer for Fastball on Sports Illustrated/FanNation and the host of 'The Payoff Pitch' podcast which can be found on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Videos on baseball also posted to YouTube. Brady has spent nearly a decade in sports talk radio and is a graduate of Oswego State University. You can follow him on Twitter @WDEVRadioBrady. 

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