Cincinnati Reds Fall to Mets for Fifth Straight Loss

W: Erik Goeddel (1-1)

L: Manny Parra (1-2)

SV: Jeurys Familia (42)

Last week, Cincinnati Reds general manager Walt Jocketty told Rick Hummel of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch that the bullpen, specifically in the seventh inning, has been disastrous for his team in 2015.

That assessment held true on Thursday night, as Manny Parra came in to pitch the seventh against the New York Mets with the score tied at three and allowed them to blow the game wide open, eventually taking the loss in the Reds’ 6-4 defeat.

The loss was the fifth straight for the Reds as they began their penultimate home series of the season.

The Reds did manage to get on the board first after three straight singles by Ivan De Jesus, Joey Votto and Brandon Phillips in the first inning.

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Just like his last start, Josh Smith couldn’t hold the lead as the Mets got to him three times in the third inning. David Wright tied the game with an RBI double and scored on a sacrifice fly by Yoenis Cespedes. Next batter Lucas Duda then made it a 3-1 game with another run-scoring double.

Smith did pitch fairly well outside of the bumpy fourth inning, however, throwing perfect innings in the first and fourth while allowing no other runs. In addition to the three runs, Smith allowed seven hits and one walk while striking out five in what was one of the better starts of his career.

The Reds would battle back to tie the game at three off of Mets’ rookie starter Steven Matz, who was touched up for 10 hits in just 5.2 innings. Ramon Cabrera led off the fifth with a pinch-hit single and scored on another RBI single by Phillips. A double by Eugenio Suarez started a rally in the sixth. Suarez crossed the plate and tied the game on a single (that probably should’ve been an error) by Adam Duvall off the glove of Wright at third base.

Though the Reds had newfound hope, it didn’t last long. Parra came in to pitch the seventh and even the two outs he managed to record were crushed by Mets hitters. Three runs later, Parra was removed for Burke Badenhop, but the game was already out of reach for the Reds.

Jay Bruce made things a little closer with a solo homer in the eighth — his fifth long-ball in his last seven games and 26th of the year — into the moon deck in right field. While the homer didn’t help the Reds win, it did help someone win the truck that’s been sitting in center field for the last 100 years, so at least one fan went home happy.

Other Notes:

• With his first inning single, Votto extended his on-base streak to 41 games, tying a career-high mark.
• While Parra struggled, the rest of the Reds’ bullpen performed admirably. Michael Lorenzen, Sam LeCure and Jumbo Diaz each threw a scoreless inning and Badenhop retired the only hitter he faced.
• De Jesus, Votto, Phillips and Suarez each collected two hits in the game.

Up Next: The Reds meet the Mets for game two of their four-game set on Friday at 7:10 p.m. ET. The game will again feature a matchup of rookie starters, as Anthony DeSclafani faces off against Noah Syndergaard.

Next: Series preview: Mets vs. Reds