Pittsburgh Pirates lose to Cincinnati Reds 0-3 – MLB Update
Pittsburgh Pirates lost to Cincinnati Reds 0-3 at Great American Ball Park in Cincinnati, Ohio on Friday, August 3 in the opening game of their three match series.
Reds’ starting pitcher Mat Latos used his sliders and fastballs to great effect to shutout the Pirates. In his seven plus solid innings, Latos gave up just four hits while striking-out five. His two run shot in the fifth inning also played a key role in
deciding the outcome of the game.
"Swing hard in case you hit it," he said about his approach. "That's the best I've got."
"Fastball command and getting strike one was a big key," Latos said with a smile on his face. "My slider wasn't as sharp as normal. My breaking ball wasn't was sharp, but the defense was stellar today."
Relief pitcher Aroldis Chapman made his 24th save of the season after striking-out two batters in the perfect ninth.
"It was Latos' night, hitting and pitching," Manager Dusty Baker said.
Pirates’ starter Wandy Rodriguez took his tenth loss on Friday after allowing seven hits and three runs in a low scoring game.
"I was surprised he swung," Rodriguez said of Latos’ hit in a post game interview. "It was a fastball on the outside of the plate. That was a big, big mistake. I was really surprised."
Cincinnati’s pitching attack displayed some top quality throwing skills to annihilate the Pirates. Showing great composure and ability to handle pressure, the Reds used their home conditions to great effect to seal an important victory.
Pirates’ Manager Clint Hurdle will be extremely disappointed with the loss on Friday. The Reds now has psychological advantage over their National League rivals and it will be interesting to see if they can use that advantage in the next two games to consolidate
their position at the top of NL Central standings table.
Pittsburgh, on the other hand, will be looking to learn the lessons from their mistakes to put things back on track in Game 2. Hurdle certainly needs to come up with a better game plan to floor the Reds in front of their home crowd.
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