CINCINNATI _ The Pirates learned a difficult lesson Friday night. One they likely know and have heard plenty before, but certainly one that determined the outcome of this particular game: Momentum in baseball can be a fickle thing. It's usually only as good as the next day's starting pitcher.
While Chad Kuhl was solid in his first start sans Steven Brault, Kuhl was no match for Cincinnati's Sonny Gray, who pitched into the seventh inning of an 8-1 Reds win at Great American Ball Park, one that saw the Pirates shift back into offensive shutdown mode.
A night after they thought their bats might've been jump-started for good by a seven-run second inning, the Pirates (4-14) enjoyed no such luck here. They got a solo home run from Bryan Reynolds and only one other extra-base hit: a double from Erik Gonzalez in the second inning.
The next batter, Cole Tucker, grounded out to first to end the inning.
Compounding the problem for the Pirates was another blowup from the bullpen. It was still technically a game when Gray left, with the Pirates trailing 3-1. But Chris Stratton gave up four earned runs in a miserable seventh inning.
The Reds picked up their first run on a ground out from catcher Tucker Barnhart before right fielder Nicholas Castellnos broke things open with a three-run homer off Stratton.
The play of the inning _ and probably the game _ occurred when Reds shortstop Freddy Galvis smartly backtracked on Barnhart's hot shot to Adam Frazier. Galvis delayed just enough to prevent the double play, which saved an out.
Had he not been thinking and kept running toward Frazier, third baseman Kyle Farmer's fly ball to center would've been the third out of the inning.
But it wasn't this play that did the most damage against the Pirates. It was just timely. Reds outfielder Jesse Winker was the most destructive, as he came into the game hitting .577 (15 for 26) over his previous nine games, with three doubles, three home runs and four RBIs.
The Pirates didn't do much to cool him down, either.
In his first at-bat, Winker took a well-located Kuhl sinker and hit it over the left-field fence. It was only 362 feet, a Great American Small Park special, but it still gave Cincinnati a 1-0 lead.
The Pirates tied it in the fourth on Reynolds' long-awaited first home run and RBI of the season. Reynolds got a 0-1 fastball and drove it 403 feet to improve to 4-for-6 with two home runs in his career against Gray.
Although Reynolds has been getting on base _ he has a team-high 10 walks _ any semblance of power has lacked. Reynolds came into Friday's game slugging just .268. Having him back _ especially now that he's been the Pirates' No. 5 hitter _ is obviously an important part of the offense improving.
The 1-1 tie didn't last long _ only until Winker came up again. This time, Winker got a hanging curveball and drove it 400 feet to the right-field concourse. It scored first baseman Joey Votto, who led the inning off with a double, and gave the Reds a 3-1 edge.
Gray was terrific for much of the night, working 6 2/3 innings, allowing Reynolds homer and not much more.
Gray struck out 10, relying on a terrific four-pitch mix where he commanded his curveball and used his harder stuff to put away Pirates hitters. Of Gray's 10 strikeouts, seven came on four-seam fastballs or sinkers.
Friday represented the MLB-record 38th consecutive start for Gray that he allowed six or fewer hits. He now has an MLB-high 45 strikeouts through five starts, most ever for a Reds pitcher in his first five starts.
Kuhl went five innings and allowed both Winker homers. He countered with six strikeouts, five of them coming on either his slider or curveball, as Kuhl showed he's a different pitcher in 2020 _ one who can still throw hard but also a guy who has elevated the use of his secondary pitches.
The Pirates had a chance to potentially rally after Gray left the game with two outs in the seventh, having given up a single to Tucker. But Reds left fielder Shogo Akiyama, for the second consecutive night, made a terrific catch, this time leaping to rob catcher Jacob Stallings of an extra-base hit.
