KSReds: Cincinnati Reds Win Series in San Francisco

After being swept in back-to-back series against the Brewers and Dodgers, the Cincinnati Reds got back in the win column against the Giants. Strong pitching performances on Friday and Sunday allowed the Reds to take two of three games in San Francisco. The series victory was the Reds’ first against an above .500 team since winning two of three against the Giants in Cincinnati a month ago. Overall, the club record is still just 25-47.

Cincinnati will get Monday off as they travel to Chicago to face the Cubs. The three-game series will begin Tuesday night at 8:05 p.m. EST. Luis Castillo is set to take the mound on Tuesday with Hunter Greene and Graham Ashcraft also scheduled to make starts at Wrigley Field.

Graham Ashcraft Dominates as Reds Win Series Opener

A major silver lining to this brutal Cincinnati Reds season has been the brilliance of rookie Graham Ashcraft. Though he was less heralded than Hunter Greene or Nick Lodolo, Ashcraft has been the best pitcher in the organization this season. On Friday night he turned in his best performance yet. The 24-year-old tossed a career-best eight innings allowing just two runs on six hits while striking out eight. Ashcraft is now 4-1 on the season with a 3.27 earned run average.

At the plate, Cincinnati got consistent run support throughout the game. Mike Moustakas and Nick Senzel got on the board in the second inning with a pair of RBI doubles. Then, they added insurance runs in the fifth and sixth innings to build their lead. In the end, the Reds closed it out with Hunter Strickland on the mound for a 4-2 victory.

Giants Lean On Long Ball For Easy Win

The ball was flying out of the bay on Saturday evening. It started off with home runs in the second inning by Evan Longoria and Their Estrada. Then, Joc Pederson and Wilmer Flores went deep as well. In total, the Giants hit four home runs, three off of Cincinnati Reds starter Mike Minor, to cruise to a 9-2 victory.

Minor, a veteran left-hander, continues to struggle after entering the Reds rotation. He allowed six runs on eight hits Saturday night to fall to 1-4 on the season with an ugly 7.71 ERA. That experiment simply isn’t working for David Bell and company.

Cincinnati struck first in the second inning with a RBI single from Nick Senzel. Brandon Drury hit a home run in the eighth inning as well. However, in between, the Giants put up nine unanswered runs to split the series at one game a piece.

Seven Run Third Lifts Reds to Series Victory

A seven-run, two-out rally on Sunday evening helped lead the Cincinnati Reds to an impressive series win in San Francisco. Brandon Drury tripled, Tommy Pham singled, and Joey Votto doubled for back-to-back-to-back hits that all drove in runs to make it 3-0. Three more hits in the same inning eventually ballooned the lead to 7-0. The Reds were simply spraying the ball around the ballpark against their former teammate Anthony DeSclafani.

On the mound, Tyler Mahle was able to put on the cruise control while pitching with the lead. Mahle went six and two-third innings allowing three runs on four hits while striking out seven. Most impressively, he walked only one batter and needed just 97 pitches to get through his six and two-thirds. That is very good pitch efficiency for Mahle.

Luis Cessa, Reiver Sanmartin, and Art Warren combined to shut the door on the Giants the rest of the way. Cincinnati won the game, and the series, 10-3.