CINCINNATI (WXIX) - When Terry Francona took over as the Reds’ manager, he already had a strong impression of TJ Friedl. Francona said, “When I saw him on the visiting team, he was a pest out there.”

Francona managed against Friedl six times. Most of those games were pretty nondescript. One of them really stands out.

On August 16, 2023, Friedl had three hits, scored three runs and, most importantly, robbed a home run against Francona’s Guardians. It’s safe to assume that this game caught Francona’s attention.

Friedl hadn’t robbed a home run between then and Tuesday’s 4-2 win over the Brewers. With two outs in the bottom of the ninth and the tying run at the plate, Friedl scaled the center field wall and made the catch that he called sweeter than any of the walk off hits that he has in h

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