The Cincinnati Reds got to Ivan Nova, and took the four game series via a 4-2 win
Welcome to Takeaways & Throwaways. Shortly after every Pittsburgh Pirates game, come to Pirates Breakdown to see our flash recap format. We’ll tell you everything you need to know about the game, without making you read the same boring recap you can see anywhere else.
FINAL: Cincinnati Reds 4, Pittsburgh Pirates 2
W: Tim Adleman (1-1, 4.22 ERA) L: Ivan Nova (3-3, 2.14 ERA); S: Raisel Iglesias (5)
Takeaways
- Francisco Cervelli showed no ill effects from his lingering foot issue, going 2-for-4 with an RBI at the plate and sliding in to score from second base on a second-inning GIft Ngoepe. He also threw out a runner late in eighth inning. Cervelli and head Pittsburgh Pirates trainer Todd Tomczyk have both indicated that the injury should stick around to some degree all season, but so far so good for the catch after his first game back.
- Josh Bell continued his resurgence, going 2-for-4.
Throwaways
- It was the Reds’ two deadliest hitters – Adam Duvall and Joey Votto – that did the most damage to the Pittsburgh Pirates, along with the customary effective Billy Hamilton performance. The snap judgment would be that the Pirates did not game plan properly for their opponent’s best players, but it is important to remember that they get paid too.
- Though he did not give up a walk, Nova was anything but sharp. His velocity was down a tick, he was missing his spots and the ten hits given up were tied for the most he has allowed in a Pittsburgh Pirates uniform.
- Once again the club failed to get anything going against relief pitching. We have previously documented the team’s inability to adjust to relief pitching, and today was no excpetion. Hard-throwing Michael Lorenzen put in two quality innings of work after relieving Reds starter Tim Adleman. Andrew McCutchen in particular had a bad at-bat against Lorenzen, grounding out on six pitches after getting ahead 3-0. Reds closer Riasel Iglesias worked around a leadoff single from Bell to get the save.
- Gregory Polanco had a forgettable day, going 0-for-4 at the plate, and looking a bit lost in left field while fielding an eventual Duvall triple. On April 17, Polanco’s slash stood at .297/.350/.378. In the intervening 13 games since, it has fallen to .174/.296/.261.
- The Pittsburgh Pirates bench continues to be middling at best. Phil Gosselin, Jose Osuna and Elias Diaz combined to go 0-for-3 as pinch hitters.
Line Of the Day
Not much to like in this one, but we will give the honors to Cervelli, who shone in his first game back after missing four.
4 AB | 1 R | 2 H | 1 RBI | 0 BB | 2 SO
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Pirates lose 4-2 to the Reds. Who is your Pirates player of the game?
— Jason Rollison (@jrollisonpgh) May 4, 2017
Up Next
The Pittsburgh Pirates will welcome their NL Central counterparts Milwaukee Brewers to PNC Park for a three-game series before heading back out on the road. Chad Kuhl is not suffering any ill effects from the line drive he took to his knee, so he will make his scheduled start tomorrow in game one. He will face off against RHP Jimmy Nelson.
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