BRADENTON, Fla. (AP) — Ross Ohlendorf is proving that the Pittsburgh Pirates were right about him.

The Pirates got the right-handed reliever from the Yankees as part of the trade for Xavier Nady last July, then put him in the rotation for the rest of the season. They kept him there this spring, and he provided more evidence on Monday that it was the right move.

Ohlendorf pitched into the sixth inning, allowing only a run set up by a flyball lost in the sun, and the Pirates’ reserves rallied in the ninth inning for a 3-2 victory over the Cincinnati Reds.

Cincinnati got its run off Ohlendorf in the sixth, when Laynce Nix hit a routine flyball to center that fell for a double when Nate McLouth lost it in the sun. Nix scored on Adam Rosales’ double to tie it at 1.

Rosales gave the Reds the lead with an RBI double in the eighth as both teams substituted all eight starters in the final innings.

Reds manager Dusty Baker liked the way starter Johnny Cueto pitched out of a threat in the fourth, when he lost his feel for his pitches. As a rookie last season, Cueto tended to let one lapse lead to another, setting up a big inning.

‘‘That’s maturity,’’ Baker said. ‘‘He’s matured. He takes his time. He knows what he has to do.’’

Cueto, who has a 1.57 ERA this spring, gave up three hits, four walks and one run in five innings.