The Cincinnati Reds had a chance to sweep Pittsburgh on Sunday, but Paul Skenes and the Pirates weren’t going to let it happen. After five shutout innings from Skenes the Pittsburgh bullpen continued what he started and gave up one hit the rest of the way in a 2-0 shutout win.
| Final | R | H | E |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pittsburgh Pirates (73-83) |
2 | 7 | 0 |
| Cincinnati Reds (76-81) | 0 | 3 | 0 |
| W: Skenes (11-3) L: Greene (9-5) SV: Chapman (11) |
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| Box Score | Game Thread | |||
The game started out well for Hunter Greene in his return as he struck out the first batter of the game on three pitches. But things went the other way quickly as Oneil Cruz hit a 442-foot home run over the Toyota sign between the Power Stacks in right-center to give the Pirates a 1-0 lead.
That would be the only run that Greene would allow on the day. His return, without a real rehab stint, meant he was limited to just three innings on Sunday but exited the game down 1-0 with Fernando Cruz taking over for Cincinnati in the top of the 4th inning. After throwing a scoreless 4th, Cruz returned to the mound for the 5th and gave up a leadoff home run to Nick Yorke – the first home run of his big league career.
Paul Skenes took care of his part of the job as he kept the Reds off of the board through five innings and struck out nine batters without a walk. But Pittsburgh went to the bullpen in the 6th and Skenes’ day was done.
The bullpen for both teams took care of things through the 8th. The Pirates were able to load the bases in the top of the 9th against Brent Suter, but he got a ground out to first base to get out of the jam. Cincinnati, trailing 2-0, entered the bottom of the 9th inning and had to face Aroldis Chapman. The former Red made quick work of the current ones, throwing a perfect 9th to pick up the save in the 2-0 Pirates win that helped them avoid being swept.
Key Moment of the Game
Oneil Cruz hitting a home run in the 1st inning. Unknown at the time, but it was all the offense the Pirates would need on the day.
Notes Worth Noting
The two teams combined to strike out 27 times in the game.
Jonathan India had two of the Reds three hits.
With the loss, Cincinnati can not have a winning season in 2024. They have to win out to avoid a losing season.
The Reds are off on Monday. They will finish up the season with two games in Cleveland and then a 3-game weekend series against the Cubs.
Up Next for the Cincinnati Reds
Cincinnati Reds vs. Cleveland Guardians
Tuesday September 24th, 6:40pm ET
Jakob Junis (4-0, 2.61 ERA) vs Tanner Bibee (11-8, 3.56 ERA)
