Abbott, Reds' momentum grinds to a halt as win streak ends

CINCINNATI -- The Reds found out on Tuesday night that sometimes the road back to seeking a respectable record can be paved with potholes.

A crater that got in Cincinnati's way was a 7-1 loss to the Cardinals at Great American Ball Park, which slowed some momentum for both the club and starting pitcher Andrew Abbott. Gone is a season-high four-game winning streak as the team's record dropped to 24-31 -- including 8-17 in May.

Abbott, who entered Tuesday with a 1.88 ERA in his previous four starts, gave up a season-high six earned runs and seven hits over six-plus innings, adding on two walks and three strikeouts while his scoreless streak ended at 14 innings. The outcome belied the way the left-hander's evening started, as he retired the first eight batters in a row.

“Two bad pitches, in reality, did most of the damage for them," Abbott said. "Two good swings by them on those mistakes, which is going to happen in this league. But I got ahead, I was able to win some even counts. There were some positives to look at overall, but not what we needed, and I didn’t do enough to get the job done for the team.”

Although he allowed a two-out RBI double by Masyn Winn in the third inning, the killers for Abbott were a pair of home runs. There was a two-run homer by Nolan Arenado in the fourth inning and a two-run homer by Nolan Gorman in the seventh after a leadoff walk on four pitches.

With one out in the fourth inning, Iván Herrera hit a single off Abbott. On a 1-0 pitch, Arenado pulled a four-seam fastball to left field. It was Arenado’s first homer against a left-handed pitcher in 111 plate appearances, dating back to last season.

“I was trying to go fastball, in. We got the fastball in -- it just wasn’t up," Abbott said. "It was just right in his sweet spot down and in, and he turned on it with a really good swing and it left the park.”

Gorman’s blast in the seventh came on an 0-2 slider.

“I felt like he was in good control all night," Reds manager David Bell said. "For a while, he was getting a lot of quick outs and kind of cruising. You look up and he had given up some runs by the end of his outing. It was really two pitches he would want back.”

Abbott was coming off his best outing of the season -- seven scoreless innings in a 2-0 win over the Padres on May 21. Instead of facing the Dodgers on Sunday, he was pushed back two extra days for more rest as Bell opted for a bullpen game in that series finale.

“I always like rest days, so I’m not going to say I don’t like the extra two," Abbott said. "I don’t think there’s anything different from five days to seven days, really. I think I would have had to execute just as well against the Dodgers as I wanted to today, and it just didn’t happen. It’s important to flip the script and move on to the next one and come ready to pitch whenever the next one is.”

There would be no bailout from the Reds' offense, which outscored the Dodgers and Cardinals by 10 runs (19-9) during its four-game win streak. With a six-pitch mix that kept them off balance, St. Louis starter Kyle Gibson took a no-hitter into the sixth inning.

It ended when Will Benson led off the frame with a homer to right field.

“We feel like we can compete with anybody out there. But at the same time, it was some tough at-bats," Bell said. "He was hitting his spots with all of those different pitches, and had the ability to throw them where he wanted. The good news is it’s not going to be that tough every game.”

There could be a nugget of more good news coming next, if the Reds can get TJ Friedl back in the lineup. Friedl, who fractured his left thumb when he was hit by a pitch on May 12, could be returning imminently and well ahead of schedule -- perhaps as soon as Wednesday afternoon's finale.

On Tuesday afternoon, Friedl estimated he took about 15 at-bats in a simulated game on the field, and he said the thumb felt good.

“I’m really close," Friedl said. "I can say that I’m really close.”