Billy Hamilton is well aware of his struggles at the plate.
The Cincinnati Reds centerfielder has tried to stay positive even as his average
and his spot in the batting order dropped at an alarming
rate
Kevin
Huber Jersey , trying to focus on being a more complete player until his
swing returned.
For the first time in a while ¨C far too long for Hamilton¡¯s liking ¨C
everything that makes him so effective was on full display Sunday against
Pittsburgh. Hamilton went 3 for 4, stole two bases, scored three times and made
a pair of vital defensive plays as the Reds held on for an 8-6 victory on
Sunday.
Hamilton started the day with a diving grab on the warning track in
right-center to rob Pittsburgh¡¯s Francisco Cervelli of extra bases in the first.
He ended it by starting the sequence that cut down the potential game-tying run
at the plate in the eighth then trotting home in the ninth after Scott
Schebler¡¯s two-run shot gave Cincinnati a little extra breathing room.
¡±Oh my goodness, that¡¯s the best part (is the hitting),¡± Hamilton said after
boosting his average .197. ¡±I ain¡¯t worried about the catch. The catch is good,
but I¡¯m just worried about what I did at the plate. Especially for me, I¡¯ve been
struggling, man. Just to have one of these days, it gives you a bunch of
confidence and clears your head a little bit.¡±
Eugenio Suarez homered in the second straight game and Joey Votto celebrated
his 1,500th major league contest by going 2 for 4 with two RBIs for the Reds.
Schebler added three RBIs for Cincinnati, which won for just the second time in
seven tries at PNC Park this season.
Anthony DeSclafani (2-1) surrendered solo home runs to Colin Moran and
Gregory Polanco but otherwise kept the Pirates in check to pick up his second
victory since his return after missing the entire 2017 season with right elbow
issues. DeSclafani struck out four against three hits and a strikeout in 5 2/3
innings and more than once caught himself marveling at Hamilton.
¡±It¡¯s unbelievable what he can do out there Tyler Boyd Jersey ,
man,¡± DeSclafani said. ¡±He saves pitchers all the time and he¡¯s just fun to
watch out there. It¡¯s like video game stuff. It¡¯s unbelievable.¡±
Raisel Iglesias allowed an inherited runner to score in the eighth and an
RBI-single to Austin Meadows in the ninth but managed to record the final four
outs for his 10th save, receiving a bit of help in the process. Iglesias entered
with two on and two outs in the eighth and immediately surrendered a double in
the gap to Polanco.
Corey Dickerson scored to pull the Pirates within one but Josh Bell was out
at home trying to score all the way from first after Hamilton raced to the ball
and quickly got it to shortstop Jose Peraza, who fired a strike to home.
The call stood upon review after the Pirates challenged Cincinnati catcher
Curt Casali may have illegally blocked the plate.
¡±I was just thinking head-first slide before he caught it so it was just too
late for me to redirect or think anything else at that point,¡± Bell said, who
added he thought Casali ¡±100 percent¡± gave him a lane to slide.
SLUMP BUSTED?
Like Hamilton, Polanco has been mired in an extended slump. The Pirates moved
him to seventh in the lineup and there are signs he¡¯s on the verge of snapping
out of it after going 3 for 3, including his ninth home run of the season.
¡±Right now I am not thinking about anything, just seeing the ball and hit
it,¡± Polanco said after boosting his average to .211. ¡±Because my swing the last
couple days has been good. I¡¯m not thinking now, I¡¯m just swinging now. And when
you¡¯re not thinking your swing is good. So you just want to continue to keep
seeing the pitches that you want to hit.¡±
MUSGROVE MUZZLED
Joe Musgrove (2-2) had been impressive in his first four starts for the
Pirates after starting the year on the disabled list with right-shoulder
problems but the Reds jumped on him the second time through the lineup.
Cincinnati scored two runs in the
fourth Andrew
Billings Jersey , fifth and sixth and finished 4 for 9 with runners in
scoring position after going 0 for 19 in the same situation over the first two
games of the series, both losses.
Musgrove was charged with six runs in 4 1/3 innings with a walk and six
strikeouts as his ERA jumped from 2.16 to 3.68.
¡±That¡¯s my first day game in a while,¡± Musgrove said after temperatures
soared into the upper 80s. ¡±Just trying to get my body alert. It was hot out
there. I felt drained.¡±
UP NEXT
Reds: off Monday then host Detroit in a brief two-game interleague series
starting Tuesday when Sal Romano (3-7, 5.67 ERA) faces Matthew Boyd (4-4,
3.23).
Pirates: Welcome Milwaukee to PNC Park for the first time this season when
the Brewers come in for a three-game set starting Monday. Trevor Williams (5-4,
4.38 ERA) faces Jhoulys Chacin (6-1, 3.32) in the opener.
¡ª
SAN DIEGO ¡ª Padres manager Andy Green says make nothing of the statistic. The
only thing that¡¯s important is that the Padres will be going for a series win
Sunday in the rubber match of a three-game series against the Pittsburgh Pirates
at Petco Park.
But here¡¯s the stat. The Padres lost Friday night¡¯s series opener to the
Pirates ¡ª marking the 18th time in the last 19 series that the Padres have lost
the opening game in the series.
Saturday night they held onto a 4-3 win to improve to 14-5 in the second game
of their last 19 series. Going into Sunday, they are 11-7 in the third game.
¡°I don¡¯t put much into that first game of a series statistic,¡± Green said
Saturday. ¡°I think it¡¯s just one of those things that you don¡¯t make too big a
deal out of. The goal is to win the series and we have Tyson (Ross) on the mound
for the rubber game.¡±
The right-handed Ross (5-5, 3.32 earned run average) will be opposing
Pittsburgh right-hander Jameson Taillon (5-6, 3.96 ERA) in Sunday afternoon¡¯s
rubber match.
The 32-year-old Ross has been the Padres most reliable pitcher this season.
The Padres are 11-5 when he starts (including a 7-2 record over his last nine
starts) Mason
Crosby Jersey , although they have failed to score a run for him the last
three times he has started.
Ross has not allowed more than three runs in his last nine starts and he has
gone five or more innings in his last 11 starts. Over his last two outings, Ross
has allowed three runs on nine hits and six walks in 13 innings. And his ERA
over those past nine starts is 3.08.
Ross has already made one successful start against the Pirates this season.
On May 18 in Pittsburgh, Ross held Pittsburgh to two runs on five hits and four
walks with two strikeouts over six innings to get credit for the win in a 3-2
Padres victory.
Sunday will be Ross¡¯ seventh career appearance against the Pirates. In six
previous starts, Ross has a 2-2 record and a 3.24 ERA. Another thing Ross has
going for him Sunday is Petco Park. He has a career 2.91 ERA in the Padres¡¯
downtown home in 53 games (44 starts).
Taillon, 26, will be facing the Padres for the first time this season
although he will be making his third career start against the Padres. He has a
1-0 record with a 1.26 ERA over 14 1/3 innings in his first two outings against
the Padres. He shut out the Padres on three hits and two walks over eight
innings in 2016.
Like Ross, Taillon will also be making his 17th start of the season. After
starting the season 2-0 with a 0.89 ERA in his first three starts, Taillon has
gone 3-6 with a 4.87 ERA in his last 13 starts. But he has won each of his past
three road starts, giving up four runs in 21 innings.
The biggest plus for Taillon Sunday could be the sunlight. He is 9-2 with a
2.87 ERA in 17 career day games and 4-0 with a 1.93 ERA in five daylight starts
on the road.