Joey Votto had a solo homer and three runs
batted in, as Cincinnati doubled up Pittsburgh, 8-4, at Great American Ball
Park.
Votto finished with two hits and two walks for the Reds, who had lost their
last two games. Darnell McDonald and Ramon Hernandez each finished with two
hits in the win.
Johnny Cueto (11-11) finished his season at the .500 mark after allowing four
runs, five hits and four walks in six innings to earn the win for the Reds.
"We wanted that victory for him," said Reds manager Dusty Baker. "That was big
at the end of the season for him."
Delwyn Young hammered a three-run homer for the Pirates, who had won their
last three games. Zach Duke (11-16) finished his campaign by losing five of
his last six decisions, having yielded five runs on six hits and five walks in
five frames Saturday.
"Obviously my fastball command wasn't very good tonight," said Duke. "I worked
behind in the count too much."
Andy LaRoche's RBI double in the first gave the Pirates the early lead, but
Cincinnati evened the game in the second on McDonald's run-scoring double.
Scott Rolen's solo blast in the third put the Reds ahead for the first time,
and they added three runs in the fourth.
McDonald and Hernandez singled to start, and McDonald scored on a Jason
Jaramillo passed ball. Hernandez went to second on the play and third on a
sacrifice bunt. After Paul Janish walked with two outs, Votto belted a two-run
double for a 5-1 advantage.
Young brought the Pirates back within one with a three-run blast in the sixth
-- his seventh of the season. However, the Reds answered in the seventh on
Juan Francisco's pinch-hit RBI double and Janish's squeeze bunt that scored
Francisco.
Votto's solo homer in the eighth capped the scoring and sealed the Reds' win.
Game Notes
Pirates rookie outfielder Andrew McCutchen stole his 20th base of the
season...Votto's homer was his 25th and the double was his 38th of the
season...Cincinnati leads the season series, 12-5.
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