MLB fans at Great American Ball Park got more than just a win, they got free pizza thanks to one of the most dramatic calls of the season.
Promotions are nothing new in baseball, but this one has built a reputation of its own in Cincinnati. Fans do not just track the score; they track strikeouts with the same intensity, knowing exactly what is on the line.
And on this night, everything came down to one final moment that could either fall flat or send the entire stadium into chaos. Because sometimes, the loudest cheer is not for a home run, it is for a strikeout.
As shown via Jomboy Media on X, the moment could not have been scripted better.
“The Reds have a promotion where fans win free pizza if the team gets 11 strikeouts in a game. They clinched it in the ninth inning on an ABS challenge and it was electric,” the tweet revealed.
The Reds were sitting on 10 strikeouts heading into the final inning, just one short of triggering the long-running “Strikeouts for Slices” promotion.
When a pitch was initially called a ball, the Reds challenged it using the ABS system, and the call was overturned to a strike, sealing the 11th strikeout and sending the crowd into a frenzy.
The moment came in a 7-2 win over the Colorado Rockies, but the pizza moment nearly stole the spotlight entirely.
Starter Chase Burns set the tone early with nine strikeouts, while the bullpen handled the rest, setting up the dramatic finish in the ninth inning.
With two outs and a two-strike count, a pitch to Edouard Julien was initially ruled a ball before the Reds quickly challenged. The ABS system overturned the call, turning it into a strikeout that ended the game and secured free pizza for every eligible fan in attendance.
Offensively, Elly De La Cruz led the way with a dominant performance, adding a home run, multiple hits and four RBIs to back up the pitching effort.
But inside the stadium, the focus shifted the moment the call was reversed. Fans erupted, chanting and celebrating a promotion that has become part of the Reds’ identity.
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