CINCINNATI -- Tuesday, the Pirates were embarrassed by the Reds.
Wednesday, they did the embarrassing, winning Game 4, 7-2, and splitting the series at Great American Ball Park.
Steven Brault took center stage, and he put on a solid performance, pitching 5 1/3 innings and giving up four hits, two walks (one intentional) and no runs. He added five strikeouts and some nifty defense, too, none better than this little slide, spin and gun-down on a Nick Senzel bunt in the fifth with runners on second and third, and two outs:
It was not a smart play by Senzel — not situationally and not against an athletic pitcher like Brault. That fact wasn't lost on Brault. He was telling me after the game Senzel's decision surprised him — but it also gave him the opportunity to show off a little bit.
And Brault is always ready to show off a little bit:
Even with Brault's performance though, the game was locked at zero heading into the sixth. The Pirates got what they needed from their starting pitcher. Now, they needed to put some runs on the board.
Enter Colin Moran with this:
Check out the dads showing some love to Moran's father. Incredible, right?
That three-run shot for Moran ultimately won the game, and it put a bow on Brault's afternoon, securing him the win and bumping his record to 2-1 on the year. Moran, soft-spoken and low-key as ever, told me he was happy to do his part for his teammate:
Not to be outdone by Moran, Josh Bell got in on the action just an inning later with a three-run shot of his own on a ball he had no business taking opposite-field and out of the park:
And here's Bell's 12th HR of May: #dkps #pirates pic.twitter.com/WAYpfn2GMW
— DK Pittsburgh Sports (@DKPghSports) May 29, 2019
Moran admired it, too.
"I'm jealous how easy it is," Moran said with a chuckle. "It's just too easy. He's so talented. He can do it all. He can take you deep and then he can, you know, two strikes take through a ball and take a single. He's so talented that, in all seriousness, it's just fun to watch."
With a Bryan Reynolds RBI single sandwiched between those two dingers, the Pirates put up all seven runs over the sixth and seventh innings, and that was all they needed to get the job done and head back to Pittsburgh with some positive momentum.
"It was a good day," Clint Hurdle was telling us after the game. "The sun came out, the bats showed up. We know what it's like to win and we know what we need to do to win... We're going to stay together and we're going to keep playing."
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