Reds officially out of postseason

Published 8:52 pm Sunday, September 18, 2016

CINCINNATI (AP) — Jameson Taillon pitched five innings and singled for his first major league RBI, and Andrew McCutchen drove in three runs, leading the Pittsburgh Pirates over the Cincinnati Reds 10-4 Saturday in the first game of a doubleheader.

Pittsbugh opened the day with a 5 1/2-game gap and three teams to overcome in order to get a wild card berth.

Cincinnati was officially eliminated from postseason contention with the loss.

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Taillon (4-4) gave up eight hits, including Adam Duvall’s three-run homer. His RBI single in the fifth made it 7-3.

The Pirates skipped Taillon’s previous turn in the rotation, trying to limit the rookie’s innings. He missed the 2014 and ‘15 seasons while recovering from Tommy John surgery and an operation to repair a hernia.

Pittsburgh sent nine batters to the plate in a 17-minute top of the first inning against Anthony DeSclafani (8-4), scoring four times with the help of three walks and the first of a six combined errors in the game. McCutchen singled home a pair of runs, and Francisco Cervelli had an RBI single.

Sean Rodriguez’s two-run homer made it 6-0 in the third inning. McCutchen added a sacrifice fly.

DeSclafani missed the first two months of the season with a strained oblique and skipped his prior turn. He gave up six runs in four innings, his shortest start in his last 15.

The first pitch was delayed 62 minutes because of rain. The doubleheader, the first between the teams since a Reds sweep on Aug. 31, 2009, made up a May 10 postponement.

TRAINER’S ROOM

Reds: SS Zack Cozart sat out a sixth straight game with a sore right knee.

UP NEXT

Pirates: Ivan Nova (12-6) starts the final game of the series on Sunday. He’s 5-0 with a 2.41 ERA in eight starts since the Pirates acquired him in a trade with the Yankees.

Reds: Dan Straily (12-8) will make his fifth start of the season against the Pirates. He’s 1-2 with a 3.12 ERA against Pittsburgh.