Barnhart’s double keys Reds’ rally
Reds 6, Diamondbacks 3 The Reds’ Phillip Ervin slides into third base after advancing on a flyout by Dilson Herrera off Diamondbacks starter Robbie Ray in the fourth inning.
Peralta, their leadoff hitter, homered. As soon as Peralta hit the ball, Reds catcher Curt Casali looked away to his left. Reds reliever David Hernandez had a similar reaction.
Scoring four runs in the bottom of the eighth, the Reds rescued their bullpen and made the most of Matt Harvey’s solid start. Harvey allowed two runs and five hits in seven innings.
The longer Harvey pitched, the better he looked. His third time through the Diamondbacks lineup, he struck out All-Star first baseman Paul
Goldschmidt and center fielder A.J. Pollock on three pitches apiece.
Harvey got out 11 of his final 13 batters, finishing his outing with seven strikeouts. Four of the strikeouts were in the fourth inning or later.
In Harvey’s last four starts, he failed to get an out beyond the fifth inning. His ERA ballooned to 5.37. This was a step back in the other direction. It was Harvey’s longest start of the season, only the second time he has reached seven innings in the last two years. Harvey threw a firstpitch strike to 10 of his
final 12 batters.
Harvey surrendered a two-run homer to Diamondbacks third baseman Eduardo Escobar in the fourth inning, Escobar’s first home run since he was traded from the Minnesota Twins on July 27.
The Reds quickly followed in the bottom half of the fourth inning. Right fielder Phillip Ervin smacked an RBI double to the left field corner, scoring Eugenio Suarez. Three batters later, Harvey slapped an opposite-field RBI single into right field to score Ervin.