CINCINNATI _ Sunday appeared to shape up well for the Pirates. With the chance to complete a four-game sweep against a Cincinnati Reds pitching staff having major trouble recording outs, the Pirates sent their best starter, Ivan Nova, to the mound. A victory would move them back above .500.
Instead, Nova had his worst start as a Pirate during a 7-4 loss at Great American Ball Park.
The Pirates are off Monday before concluding their three-city, 11-game divisional road trip against the Brewers in Milwaukee. They went 5-3 in the first two stops.
Nova allowed three times as many hits (nine) as innings completed (three). Only three of the five runs he allowed were earned, thanks to a Josh Bell error in the second, but the Reds earned their base hits. They squared up most of the nine, which included three doubles, as Nova struggled to disrupt their timing or keep the ball down and on the corners.
Tucker Barnhart drove a two-run double to the wall in the second inning. Joey Votto and Brandon Phillips doubled and scored in the three-run third.
In eight starts since joining the Pirates, Nova had a 2.41 ERA, with 46 hits allowed in 52 1/3 innings. Much like J.A. Happ last year, the free-agent-to-be amplified the market he'll enter this offseason with his final two months of play.
"If it were up to us, he'd be back here," Pirates general manager Neal Huntington said. "I'm sure if it were up to him, he'd have a massive contract. Now, we've got to find somewhere in the middle ground and does it make sense? We've got to find financial middle ground."
Pedro Florimon, who received a rare start Sunday, hit a two-run triple in the second inning. Sean Rodriguez homered for the fifth time in seven games, and for the third game in a row, in the sixth.
