Johnny Cueto, Chris Heisey Spur Cincinnati Reds to Victory

Escaping the Steel City with a victory on Sunday, the Reds can give much thanks to the two-man show of Johnny Cueto and Chris Heisey, who carried them to a 3-2 victory over the Pittsburgh Pirates.

Just as Pirates starter Francisco Liriano took to the mound to get the afternoon matinee underway after threats of rain, news came across the wire that the Reds had shipped off set-up man Jonathan Broxton to the Milwaukee Brewers. The move came as a bit of a shock, but makes sense from an economic perspective for the Redlegs.

Not on the move (at least not yet) for Cincinnati was Johnny Cueto. His first pitch of the game, a cut-fastball down the heart of the plate, was belted beyond the left field fence for a solo home run off the bat of whom else but Josh Harrison. Continuing his tormenting of the Reds, Harrison would collect two more hits on Sunday, including leading off the game with a blast into a sea of black and gold.

If there is a chink anywhere in the armor of Cueto, it definitely comes in the home run department. He had allowed 18 coming into the game, but the majority of those were of the solo variety. Also hitting a solo shot off him on Sunday was Pirates shortstop Jordy Mercer, who followed up Starling Marte being picked off of first base with a blast of his own on a hanging slider from Cueto in the bottom of the second.

That would be all the run scoring the Bucs would do, but in order for Johnny Beisbol to get his 16^th win of the season, he would need some help from the bats.

Striking out the side in the first inning was Francisco Liriano. Reds fans still haunted by last October may never be able to get the image of Liriano snapping off slider after slider on unsuspecting hitters in last year’s Wild Card game out of their head. Despite his 3-10 record in 2014, that very same pitcher looked to be on the mound on Sunday.

Making his eighth career start against Cincinnati, Liriano has still never managed to pick up a regular season win. He would doom himself once again with his walks. Giving Ryan Ludwick a free pass to lead off the fifth inning, Chris Heisey, who got a start in place of the slumping Jay Bruce, jumped all over a 2-2 pitch and immediately put his head down and ran the bases as he knew he got all of it. His sixth home run of the year (and just his third in a starting role) had knotted the game up at two.

Setting the stage for Cueto be eligible for the win was third baseman Kristopher Negron, who made an unbelievable grab to keep the game tied and get Johnny out of the eighth inning. After base hits by Josh Harrison and Andrew McCutchen, runners were at second and third with two outs for the only man with two Grand Slams off the Reds this season in Ike Davis. Getting jammed, Davis flared a ball down the left field line in foul territory that appeared as if it were going to harmlessly find the grass, but sprinting from the moment of contact, Negron and his happy feet got to the ball on a dive.

Sending the game to the ninth still tied, the Redlegs would have one last chance to score and give Cueto an opportunity at the win.

The Pirates would send out reliever Jared Hughes for a second inning of work, hoping not to have to use closer Mark Melancon for a third day in a row. The strategy would backfire, as Chris Heisey jumped all over a power sinker from Hughes and hooked it fair inside the foul pole down the left field line to nearly the identical spot he hit his first ever Major League home run at PNC Park. Continuing with the ever so befuddling baseball life of Chris Heisey, on a day when Jay Bruce was not in the lineup, his replacement was the game’s offensive hero.

There was a bottom of the ninth, but there was also Aroldis Chapman. Meaning, two strikeouts and a pop-out to right field would seal the deal, giving Cueto his 16^th win of the season, keeping a shot at 20 alive.

The Reds will slink out of Pittsburgh without their former set-up man; their playoff hopes on life support, and will head towards Baltimore, where the mashing first-place Orioles await.

Getting underway Tuesday night, the series opener will feature Mat Latos against former Houston Astro Bud Norris for what will be a 7:05 p.m. start time from Oriole Park at Camden Yards.