PITTSBURGH _ The Pirates overcame their baserunning mistakes Friday night. They overcame their inability to retire the opposing starter at the plate. Down by a run three times, three times they evened the score, but they could not overcome another ninth-inning run allowed by Tony Watson.
The Cincinnati Reds broke a tie against the Pirates closer in the ninth inning of a 4-3 loss, the ninth in the Pirates' past 11 games. Again under .500, the Pirates are at least 4{ games out of the second wild-card spot, with the New York Mets and St. Louis Cardinals still playing Friday night.
Watson also struggled Tuesday, when he allowed four runs and three home runs in two-thirds of an inning. He recorded the save Wednesday. Friday he entered in a non-save situation, with the game tied 3-3, and allowed a leadoff single to Eugenio Suarez.
Ramon Cabrera bunted Suarez to second and Tyler Holt fisted a soft single to right field. Andrew McCutchen caught Jose Peraza's line drive to center, but the ball was deep enough to allow Suarez to score.
Trying to reel in the Mets and Cardinals becomes a lot harder when the opposing pitcher goes 2-for-2 with a double and an RBI and two batters get themselves picked off. After a leadoff double in the second, Reds starter Tim Adleman caught Gregory Polanco straying too far from second base. Jung Ho Kang, on first with two outs in the sixth, was unaware when Adleman's pickoff throw came.
Josh Harrison singled to begin the home eighth. In a pinch-hit appearance, John Jaso singled to advance Harrison to third. McCutchen's sacrifice fly brought in Harrison and brought the game to a 3-3 tie. The Pirates had a chance in the ninth, when they loaded the bases with one out, but could not convert. They went 1-for-11 with runners in scoring position and left eight men on base.
Brandon Phillips broke a 2-2 tie after five innings. Steven Brault had already exited, his two runs and five hits in five innings in the books. Jared Hughes entered to face Phillips, the first batter of the sixth, and he pulled a 2-2 inside slider into the left-field seats for his 10th home run of the season.
Leading off the third inning, Adleman doubled to the gap in right-center field. Brault walked Jose Peraza and Zack Cozart bunted the runners into scoring position. Joey Votto singled for the second time in two at-bats and the Reds led, 1-0.
The Pirates tied the game in the bottom half, but Adleman ensured the tie didn't last. Suarez doubled with two outs in the fourth. With a base open, Brault intentionally walked Ramon Cabrera to pitch to Adleman. Brault got two strikes on Adleman, but Adleman still singled to right, driving in a run and giving the Reds a lead.
Jordy Mercer twice led off an inning with a single and scored to tie the game. Harrison's third-inning double drove in Mercer to tie the game at 1-1, and Josh Bell hit an RBI grounder in the fifth that again leveled the score.
