PITTSBURGH -- Even when the Reds battle in competitive games, they have sometimes found ways to beat themselves. That was the case during Friday night's 4-2 loss to the Pirates at PNC Park.

Here are three key elements of the loss, Cincinnati's fourth in a row.

Infield defense foils Reds again
Reds reliever Derek Law was poised to complete a scoreless sixth inning in a 2-2 game when Mark Mathias hit a sharp but routine grounder to Jose Barrero at shortstop. Barrero booted the ball before picking it up and rushing his throw to first base. It may have been on time for the out, but Jason Vosler couldn't handle it as Connor Joe scored the go-ahead run. 

“It looked like it was a tough in-between hop," Reds manager David Bell said. "Maybe it came up a little bit. [Barrero] actually did a real nice job of staying with it, and [he] made a good throw. I just found out, and didn’t realize this, it may have gone through the webbing of Jason’s glove."

The official scorer charged Barrero with an error, his second of the season.

"Obviously, I didn’t want it to happen. It happened right there," Barrero said via translator Jorge Merlos.

However, Barrero has struggled to make plays in the field this season. He came into the game with -3 outs above average, ranking lowest among National League shortstops.

"I don’t feel any different. I feel the same," Barrero said. "I prepared myself the same way as I have every other year."

Barrero, 25, had been known for his defense since he was rushed to the big leagues from the High-A level during the pandemic-shortened 2020 season.

"We talk a lot about his offense and getting acclimated to the league and making adjustments. But the same goes for the defense," Bell said. "He has all the ability in the world to play there and be one of the best in the game. It’s just going to take time. He’s certainly working every single day to become great there."

Meanwhile, entering Friday, Cincinnati's overall infield defense this season had turned only 62 percent of ground balls into outs -- the lowest percentage in Major League Baseball. The league average, according to Statcast, is 74 percent.

Ashcraft had to work harder
Bell made the decision to go to Law for the sixth inning after starting pitcher Graham Ashcraft threw 89 pitches through five innings. Ashcraft allowed two earned runs on three hits and three walks with four strikeouts. 

Ashcraft had to battle often in the game, including a 10-pitch at-bat vs. Carlos Santana in the fourth inning that ended with a groundout. 

"He just got into probably too many deep counts to be able to go deeper than the fifth," Bell said. "Good start. The slider was good. He relied pretty heavily on it.”

Ashcraft gave up both runs during a lengthy second inning. After Joe singled, a one-out walk to Jack Suwinski put runners on first and second base. Facing Mathias, Ashcraft was worried about the runner on second base and committed a balk.

"I could see how big his lead was. He flashed, and I was startled," said Ashcraft, who then yielded a two-run single to Mathias. "The game sped up on me. … One of those games that happened to go their way."

Ashcraft gave up a leadoff walk and a two-out walk in the fifth inning. That cemented the decision to go to the bullpen for the sixth.

"As much as I would want to, I was gassed. Those were some really grindy innings," Ashcraft said. "Of course I’d go back out, and I’m not going to say I don’t want to take the ball. They made the right decision. They could tell I was starting to get gassed."

Senzel gets key hit
Since coming off the injured list and making his season debut on April 13, center fielder Nick Senzel hadn't found much success. Entering Friday, he was batting .160 (4-for-25) in seven games, but he delivered an important hit against Pittsburgh in the fifth inning.

After Tyler Stephenson connected for Cincinnati's first hit of the night with a single against Mitch Keller, Vosler drew a walk. That set up Senzel, who slashed a sharply-lined RBI single down the right-field line. Barrero followed with a game-tying sacrifice fly.

"I really like his approach at the plate right now," Bell said of Senzel. "I think he feels good with the adjustments he has made. We’re still young in the season here, especially for Nick. Got a little bit of a late start, but he’s getting more and more comfortable at the plate.”