The Pittsburgh Pirates losing streak hit nine games Monday, as the Bucs fell to the Cincinnati Reds 11-6. The Reds scored 10 runs in the second inning, knocking out pitcher Alex McRae, who was making his first major league start. McRae was called into start the game after the Pirates traded scheduled starter Jordan Lyles.
Four of the Pirates runs came on a Colin Moran grand slam home run in the sixth.
The Pirates have now gone 2-15 out of the All-Star break. They were 2-1/2 games out of the National League Central lead at that time.
The Bucs and Reds meet again tonight at 7:10pm. Pre-game on WISR is 6:45pm. Joe Musgrove will start for the Pirates.
The Pirates play the Reds tomorrow afternoon at 12:35pm, have an off-day Thursday and return home to host the New York Mets Friday.
Prior to the game, the Pirates traded starting pitcher Jordan Lyles to the Milwaukee Brewers for 25-year old Double-A reliever Cody Ponce. The Pirates had signed Lyles to a one-year $2 million contract back in December. He went 4-1 in his first eight starts with the Pirates with a 1.89 ERA. Lyles went 1-6 with a 9.57 ERA in his last nine starts.
The Major League Baseball trade deadline is tomorrow.