Future Hall of Famer Terry Francona has a tough balancing act to perform in his first season as Cincinnati Reds manager. He is tasked with guiding this group to a winning season while also helping the younger players come of age. Both things happened on Tuesday, as the gritty ballclub pulled out a 5-4 extra-innings victory over the New York Yankees in Chase Burns' big-league debut.

The right-handed starting pitcher, who is ranked No. 11 on MLB's top-100 prospect list, emphatically introduced himself to the Cincy faithful in Great American Ball Park. He struck out the Yankees' first three hitters, including Aaron Judge, to begin what scouts and fans expect to be a successful career in The Show. They all went down swinging, powerless against Burns' devastating fastball-slider combination.

The No. 2 overall pick in the 2024 MLB Draft faced considerable trouble in the fourth inning, though, allowing a 427-foot home run to Ben Rice and a two-RBI triple to Anthony Volpe to put the Reds in a 3-0 hole. He trudged on and finished with eight strikeouts and no walks in five innings of work. A giddy Burns savored his inaugural outing after Cincinnati rallied and earned its third straight win. He did not hesitate when revealing his favorite punch-out of the evening.

“It’s gotta be Judge,” the 22-year-old told the media, per WLWT's Charlie Clifford. When a newly-minted rookie overpowers one of the greatest hitters of his generation, he is going to remember it for a long, long time. Aaron Judge did record a single in his second at-bat, but Chase Burns displayed electric stuff in front of the home crowd.

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The future looks bright for Burns, Reds

If this young righty can steadily improve his command as he logs more MLB innings, Francona could have another ace to call upon in the near future. Andrew Abbott has quietly been sensational this season (1.79 ERA in 13 starts) and Hunter Greene has remained excellent when healthy — currently on injured list with a right groin strain — but Burns could potentially boost the Reds' pitching rotation to towering heights.

It was the lineup and bullpen that really came through on this night, however. A dominant Carlos Rodon left the game after six scoreless innings, apparently because of the stifling heat, and Cincy capitalized. Christian Encarnacion-Strand tied the game with a three-run double in the seventh inning, and offseason addition Gavin Lux hit a walk-off single in the bottom of the 10th.

A see-saw kind of matchup, which included a perplexing lapse in concentration by franchise cornerstone Elly De La Cruz, ended in euphoria. The Reds (42-38) are only two games out of the third and final National League Wild Card slot. Burns may lack experience, but if this fun squad is going to squeeze its way into the playoffs, he will probably have plenty to do with it.