CINCINNATI -- Throughout the first half, Nick Castellanos and Jesse Winker were two of the best hitters in the National League, and the two All-Stars most often carried the Reds offensively. Then Winker hit a lull, and Castellanos was injured during the first game of the second half.

The whole Reds lineup seems to be a menace for opposing pitchers these days, but it was Castellanos and Winker who combined forces once again to help power the Reds to an 11-3 victory over the Pirates at Great American Ball Park on Saturday.

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"When the middle of your order is swinging the bat with confidence, that does help a lot," Reds manager David Bell said. "It helps take the pressure off the rest of the lineup, really. It’s not always going to be that way, and it hasn’t been for us. We’ve had guys throughout the lineup step up and get clutch hits and definitely do their part in a big way.

Castellanos had two hits with a home run, while Winker went 3-for-5 with a homer and evened his career high with six RBIs for the second time this season.

Unlike Mike Moustakas, Castellanos did not enjoy the instant gratification of immediate success upon his return Thursday from the injured list. While Moustakas hit three doubles in Friday's win, Castellanos was 0-for-7 with five strikeouts in his first two games.

That changed in the third inning when Castellanos notched his first hit since returning from a right wrist microfracture, an RBI single to left field for the game's go-ahead run. Leading off the fifth inning, he slugged a home run, his 19th of the season.

“We’re getting there. Third game back so just getting into the flow of things, you know?” said Castellanos, who leads the NL with a .324 average. “I just have to keep my swing short right now. Just be short to it. Today, I was a little better. Obviously, there’s going to be an adjustment. My wrist is good. It’s not 100 percent, but it’s definitely good enough to play. Now it’s just staying relaxed. Everything just kind of takes care of itself.”

Winker drove in the tying run with his third-inning double to right field that scored Shogo Akiyama. In the sixth inning, he hit a two-out two-run single to right field. Winker put the game away in the eighth inning with a three-run homer to right field -- his 23rd of the season.

Since July 23, when he had dipped to a season-low .291 average, Winker has stormed back to bat .397 with four homers, 15 extra-base hits and 13 runs scored in his last 15 games.

"Guys were on base in front of me all night, so with that I just wanted to try to drive the ball hard," Winker said. "They just found some grass and the last one got up and got out. Guys were on base all night, and I just wanted to do my part and drive them in if I could."

Surging Cincinnati, which has taken the first three games of the four-game series from Pittsburgh, has won four straight games and nine of its last 11 to go a season-high nine games over .500 at 60-51. The club hasn't reached that mark since it finished the 2013 season 18 games over .500 at 90-72.

First-place Milwaukee lost on Saturday to put the second-place Reds six games back in the NL Central. The Reds remained 2 1/2 games behind San Diego for the second Wild Card.

"Just because we’re rolling right now doesn’t mean [much] honestly because there is two months of the season left," Castellanos said. "We have another division game tomorrow that we have to take care of. We have to stay the course, and we have to still take pride in every game that we play because that’s the only way this season is going to end in our favor.”

With a Major League-leading 125 runs since the All-Star break, the Reds offense continues to motor. It has scored five or more runs in six straight games and 14 of their last 15.

But Castellanos and Winker no longer have to shoulder the load.

Joey Votto, who tied Winker for the team lead with his 23rd homer on an eighth-inning solo drive to right field, has cleared the fences in nine of his last 11 games.

Jonathan India added two more hits and scored two runs. India is batting .394 with five homers over his last eight games.

Starting pitching has pulled its weight as well, including Vladimir Gutierrez. Over his six innings, Gutierrez allowed one earned run and six hits with one walk and six strikeouts. In his last three starts, Gutierrez has a 1.86 ERA and five of his last six games have been quality starts.

What has been Castellanos' favorite part of the recent stretch of success?

“I would say watching this group of guys slowly turn into a team and really buy into one theme and one goal, which is to put Cincinnati into the postseason and deep into the postseason," he replied. "It’s a process. We’ve had some ups, we’ve had some downs. Right now, we’re playing good baseball. Most importantly, I think we’re having fun. We’re pulling for one another, and I think guys are really getting comfortable with their role in a Reds jersey right now.”