For the second game in a row, the Pittsburgh Pirates pitching staff was overwhelmed by the Cincinnati Reds’ offense. The result this afternoon was an 11-4 route at Great American Ballpark. With the victory, the Reds completed the three game series sweep of the Bucs.
After winning the opening game of the season, the Pirates have now lost five straight and are in a freefall. They managed to score four runs today, but those came in the ninth inning when the game had already been decided. Overall, it was a dominant performance this week for the Reds over the Bucs.
Chad Kuhl started for Pittsburgh was ineffective, giving up five runs (four earned) on two hits with five walks in four innings. Chris Stratton gave up three runs in his two innings, while Michael Feliz and David Bednar also gave up runs in their appearances this afternoon.
The Reds scored five runs in the first inning, including a homerun by Tyler Naquin and a double by Kyle Farmer.
They added three more runs in the fifth, including a homerun by Nick Castellanos. Two more homeruns later in the game by Tyler Stephenson and Aristides Aquino, both in the eighth, made this one a joke.
A grand slam by Erik Gonzalez in the ninth got the Bucs on the board, but it was far too little, far too late.
This has been an ugly start to the season for the Pirates. We knew this was going to be a challenging year, but this couldn’t have started off worse. No time to rest, either, as they return home to open up their schedule at PNC Park tomorrow afternoon against the Chicago Cubs tomorrow.
Record vs. Reds: 0-3
Record vs. N.L. Central: 1-5
Record on the Road: 1-5
Overall Record: 1-5
And…
As Always…
Let’s Go Bucs!
