Jesse Winker obliterates Pirates pitching, leads Cincinnati Reds to 11-3 victory

The Joe Nuxhall Memorial Honorary Star of the Game

I had this all written up for Vladimir Gutierrez at one point, and that got deleted.

I then had it written for Shogo Akiyama, only to scrap that, too.

It then went to Jonathan India, because he raised his season OBP to .406 after getting on-base another four times.

Right after I’d finished that update, though, Jesse Winker socked a 3-run tater, a blast that gave him a ridiculous six ribbies on an evening where he finished just a triple shy of a cycle. He scored twice, too, and this entire thing was meant to highlight just how good the Cincinnati Reds have it going at the moment (at least, how good they have it going when facing the Pittsburgh Pirates, at least).

Congrats to all parties involved on yet another banger of an evening, one that included Nick Castellanos socking a dinger, too. And Joey Votto socking a dinger, too.

Key Plays

• Bryan Reynolds was an All Star selection this year, and rightfully so. He zapped a triple down the RF line off Gutierrez in the Top of the 3rd, and it plated Ke’Bryan Hayes in the process, putting the Reds in an early 1-0 hole.
• That didn’t last long, however. Shogo led off the Bottom of the 3rd with a single, and he moved up a bag on a single by India. Shogo then scored on a ribbie double by Winker, Castellanos followed with a ribbie single to plate India, and Winker then scored on a sac-fly into LF by Joey Votto. Reds led, 3-1.
• Blastellanos played add-on with his 19th dinger of the season in the Bottom of the 5th, a opposite-field laser that cleared the RF wall to put the Reds up, 4-1.
• A 2-out, 2-run single by Winker off a LHP plated both Tucker Barnhart and Aristides Aquino in the Bottom of the 6th, a sock that put the Reds ahead, 6-1.
• Brad Brach bullpen’d in the Top of the 8th, yielding a mammoth 2-run tater to Reynolds that bashed into the batter’s eye beyond the CF wall. That made it a 6-3 game.
• Another Shogo single came in the Bottom of the 8th, and he moved into scoring position after Tyler Naquin chipped in with a pinch-hit walk. India then singled to plate Shogo and make it a 7-3 game, with Winker’s subsequent 3-run blast making this a mockery. Votto then homered to make it a thorough travishamockery, and this one finished 11-3.

Tony Graphanino

Other Notes

• Root, root, root for the Arizona Diamondbacks against the San Diego Padres tonight in what’s a 2-2 game in early action out west. Meanwhile, the farkin’ Milwaukee Brewers will never lose another game ever again, it appears.
• Sunday’s series finale between these two will feature Tyler Mahle on the bump for the Reds opposite Bryse Wilson of the Pirates. It’ll be the typical 1:10 PM ET start time, weather permitting, so get your afternoon beer goggles ready alongside your brooms.
• Tunes.