Reds drop 5th straight in 4-2 loss to Padres
By Brad Rowland
It has been a rough week for the Cincinnati Reds, and that week got even rougher with a 4-2 defeat in San Diego on Tuesday night.
Nick Hundley blasted a two-run double that propelled the Padres to their margin of victory, and that was all the damager that the Padres pitching staff needed to grab the win. Edinson Volquez navigated through 6.1 innings of 2-run ball despite 5 walks, and the Padres’ bullpen, headlined by Dale Thayer and Huston Street, slammed the door by allowing just 1 hit over the final 3 frames.
The win had to be all that much sweeter for San Diego, because they knocked off their former favorite son in Mat Latos. Latos was very good in this one, allowing only 2 runs and striking out 6 over 6 innings, but it wasn’t enough thanks to the friendly confines of Petco Park.
For Cincinnati, the loss gives them a season-long losing streak of 5 games, and as the Pittsburgh Pirates vault forward, the Reds risk losing control of a potential playoff berth if they don’t step up their level of play. At 59-49, they are still in tremendous shape, but it is time to acknowledge the fact that they aren’t bulletproof with regard to the playoffs for 2013.
Unfortunately for Reds fans, they have only themselves to blame in the midst of this losing skid.