KSReds: Cincinnati Reds Lose Two of Three Games to the Pirates

On Monday, June 17th the Cincinnati Reds were 34-37 and about to begin an important 13-game stretch. Those 13 games were to be played against the Pittsburgh Pirates, Boston Red Sox, and St. Louis Cardinals who were, at the time, either a single game above .500 or below .500. Simply going 8-5 during that stretch would get the Reds to 42-42 with just a couple of weeks before the All-Star break. However, after losing the first three series of stretch, they have already lost six games. The season could really start to get away from the Reds in a hurry as they currently sit at 37-43 overall.

In order to right the ship, Cincinnati will have to go into St. Louis and beat the rival Cardinals. While the Reds are sliding, the Cardinals have been playing their best baseball of the season lately. Andrew Abbott is set to take the ball on Thursday evening for a 7:45 p.m. Eastern Time first pitch. Frankie Montas, Carson Spiers, and Hunter Greene are also slated to start in the four-game series. Taking three out four at Busch Stadium feels like a must.

Offensive Explosion Powers Reds to Win

Carson Spiers, making his second spot-start of the season, gave the Cincinnati Reds a chance to win. The 26-year old threw six innings allowing three runs on seven hits to earn the victory. Though Pittsburgh got on top with a RBI single in the third, the Reds exploded for five runs in the fourth to allow Spiers to pitch with the lead. After adding three more in the fifth and two in the sixth, the Reds were able to cruise to an 11-5 series-opening victory.

Though Spiers’ start was encouraging, the real story of Monday night came at the plate. Cincinnati recorded 12 hits on their way to 11 runs, their sixth double-figure run night of the season. Spencer Steer got the party started with a two-run double in the fourth that gave the Reds the lead and they never looked back from there. Stuart Fairchild plated two more in the fourth with a double of his own. Later, Elly De La Cruz would cap it all off with a three-run home run that landed on top of the riverboat deck in dead centerfield.

Both Jonathan India and De La Cruz, batting first and second in the lineup, finished Monday night with three hits and three runs scored. De La Cruz and Spencer Steer each drove in three runs. Overall, it was one of Cincinnati’s better offensive performances of the season. The 11-5 win brought them to 37-41 overall on the season.

Hunter Greene’s Early Struggles Led to Loss

On Monday, it took a little while for the Cincinnati Reds’ bats to get going. However, the pitching was good enough to allow them to heat up in the middle innings. Hunter Greene did not provide the Reds’ offense with the same luxury on Tuesday evening. It was his second straight tough start as he would exit after just four innings allowing six runs on seven hits. To add insult to injury, Greene also quite literally threw up on the mound while he was struggling to record outs.

It took the Pirates next to no time to get on the board at Great American Ball Park on Tuesday. Andrew McCutchen led the game off with a walk. Then, Bryan Reynolds blasted a 426-foot home run into the right field bleachers making it 2-0 before fans could even get settled into their seats. Reynolds’ 13th home run of the season also extended his hitting streak to 22 games. Pittsburg added another run in the first before doubling it up in the third and adding two more in the fifth. Cincinnati trailed 8-0 and was essentially out of the game before they showed any life at the plate.

Spencer Steer and Tyler Stephenson drove in runs with a double and triple respectively, and there was a little bit of life shown in the ninth, but ultimately Pittsburgh knotted up the series with a 9-5 win.

Reds Lose Another Series After Ugly Rubber Match Performance

It simply didn’t not look like the Cincinnati Reds came to Great American Ball Park ready to play on Wednesday afternoon. That was very disappointing to see given how crucially important winning games like this has become due to the hole the Reds have already dug themselves. Wednesday’s loss marked a fourth straight series loss as the season record fell to 37-43.

Graham Ashcraft is simply not pitching at a Major League level right now. He hasn’t recorded more than 16 outs in a game since May 1st and has allowed 44 hits in seven starts during that stretch. Opponents are finding it easy to spray the ball around the ballpark against him. Following Wednesday’s loss, Ashcraft’s ERA has ballooned to 5.45 as he sits at 4-4 on the season.

While Pittsburgh knocked the ball around, including two home runs, Cincinnati managed just four hits on the afternoon. Jonathan India stayed hot at the plate recording half of the Reds hits, but he was the only bright spot from the game. After he tied the game with a RBI double in the third inning, the Pirates answered via solo home runs by Rowdy Tellez and Andrew McCutcheon in the fourth and fifth respectively. They would go on to win the game 6-1 to take the series.