Sometimes, a pitcher's masterpiece deserves a better fate. That was the story for the Cincinnati Reds on Sunday, as rookie Chase Burns delivered the most dominant outing of his young career—only to watch his offense go silent in a frustrating 1-0 loss to the Pittsburgh Pirates.
Burns was nothing short of electric, firing seven shutout innings while striking out seven batters with surgical efficiency. The Reds' pitching staff had been running on fumes after back-to-back short starts, making Burns' deep outing a gift. He even cruised into the eighth inning, giving the bullpen a much-needed breather. But baseball can be cruel: when a starter deals, the offense has to reward him. On this day, they didn't.
The Reds entered the series riding a wave of momentum, but PNC Park proved to be a house of horrors once again. Cincinnati has now dropped 48 of their last 69 games in Pittsburgh, and a sweep in this three-game set stings even more given how well they had been playing.
The decisive moment came in the bottom of the eighth. Setup reliever Tony Santillan, tasked with keeping the game tied, ran into trouble with two outs. Pirates shortstop Konnor Griffin doubled to spark the rally, and after a walk to pinch-hitter Jake Magnum, Pittsburgh's best hitter, Oneil Cruz, delivered a single to center that scored Griffin and broke the deadlock.
The Reds had their best chance to answer in the top of the eighth. Backup catcher Jose Trevino doubled, putting two runners in scoring position with two outs. The Pirates countered with a left-handed reliever to face Reds center fielder TJ Friedl. Manager Terry Francona had Dane Myers available off the bench—a player who has been platooning with Friedl—but stuck with Friedl, who had been swinging a hot bat. The decision backfired when Friedl struck out to end the inning.
Francona was searching for offense with a reshuffled lineup. Left fielder JJ Bleday hit second for just the second time this season, Matt McLain batted ninth for the first time, and Sal Stewart started at third base to get Will Benson's bat in the order. Slumping Ke'Bryan Hayes watched from the bench. But the new combinations couldn't solve Pirates starter Braxton Ashcraft, who allowed just four hits over 7⅔ shutout innings, leaning on a big fastball and a devastating curveball.
There is a silver lining: Burns' heroics saved the Reds' bullpen heading into Monday's series opener. With prospect Chase Petty set to make a spot start in a four-game set, Cincinnati's arms will be fresher thanks to their rookie's brilliance—even if the win column didn't cooperate.