CINCINNATI -- Though the Pirates showed signs of progress in Sunday’s 3-2 loss to the Reds at Great American Ball Park, they were once again swept in Cincinnati, this time in four games.

The Pirates are now winless in their last 12 in Cincinnati, a span in which the team’s ERA is 7.68 and the offense has produced a meager .193 batting average.

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“I don’t know. I wish I had the answer to that,” manager Derek Shelton said about the Pirates’ woes at Great American Ball Park. “They have had our number in this ballpark.”

The series finale was the closest game of the bunch, though, and it was a botched double play in the fourth inning away from going to extra innings. Here are three takeaways from a sweep-clinching loss that may point to at least a few gains.

Wilson boosting Bucs out of the gate

Bryse Wilson gave the Bucs their best start of the weekend, going six innings while allowing three runs in the fourth -- his only shaky inning of the game, which began with two hits off the end of the bat. He pounded the strike zone to match his career high of seven strikeouts while issuing his only walk intentionally.

“I think it speaks a little bit to the stuff,” Shelton said of Wilson’s ability to stay in the strike zone. “When you have stuff to be able to get guys out in the zone, it’s really important. He trusts that.”

In his team debut on Monday, Wilson went five innings with only one run allowed against the National League Central-leading Brewers. Not a bad beginning for one of the pieces acquired from the Braves in the Richard Rodríguez trade, one whom general manager Ben Cherington said could be “a strong part of” the Pirates’ rotation going forward.

“For me, I wanted to come in and put a stop on the lineup that was really hot, hitting a lot of homers on a lot of good pitches,” Wilson said. “It was cool to be able to do that and have two starting pitchers -- I went six, he went seven -- [in a] pitching duel.”

Young Hayes dialed in

Ke'Bryan Hayes admitted on Friday that he hasn’t been as comfortable in the box over the past few weeks. Now, he believes things are starting to change.

Hayes has taken mental notes on his stance from earlier in the Reds series and video notes from his upswing earlier in the year. He stuck with the process of replicating in batting practice, in the cage and on the playing field, and it allowed him to not miss the one pitch he got to hit on Sunday in the sixth inning, which he deposited into the Reds’ bullpen for a homer.

“Just kind of trying to mirror that, I felt more comfortable in the box, and I feel like it’s giving me a better chance at squaring the ball up,” Hayes said.

The home run came after a stretch of 26 games without a home run for Hayes, who said he’s looking more to make line-drive contact over thinking about swinging for the fences.

“Really a step forward for Key in this series,” Shelton said. “If there was one bright spot offensively in this series, it was Key. I thought his swings were way better.”

Park, Alford get reps

Two interesting hitters at Triple-A this season -- infielder/outfielder Hoy Park and outfielder Anthony Alford -- played in every game possible this series in Cincinnati. Expect that to be the case in the short term, as the Pirates try to evaluate how their gains in 2021 translate to the Majors.

Pirates assistant general manager Kevan Graves told 93.7 The Fan on Sunday morning that he expects left fielder Ben Gamel, who was placed on the 10-day injured list on Friday with a right hamstring strain, to miss more than the minimum window of days.

Alford, whose contract was selected on Saturday morning, made both starts in left field in Gamel’s place on Saturday and Sunday, while Park shifted to left field on Thursday after Gamel was scratched from the lineup.

Park, whom the Pirates acquired from the Yankees for Clay Holmes, also got starting reps at shortstop on Saturday and Sunday in the place of Kevin Newman, who has had one of the toughest offensive seasons on the club this season.

Alford and Park combined to go 8-for-21 (.381) with three doubles vs. the Reds, and with the Deadline well behind the Pirates, it appears the club will make good on giving the opportunities they’ve talked about to young players who perform in August and September.

“You’re going to see those guys play,” Shelton said. “They’re definitely going to get opportunities.”