Votto's momentum not enough for sweep

CINCINNATI -- During the Reds' off-day on Thursday, a story on this web site opined that Joey Votto would be OK. Six games later, the first baseman has been hitting far more than OK.

Votto's recent momentum didn't stop against Cleveland ace Shane Bieber, but most of the Reds’ lineup was unable to follow his lead on Sunday afternoon. Votto was 3-for-4 with two RBIs, but Cincinnati could not complete a three-game series sweep after a 6-3 loss to the Indians at Great American Ball Park.

"He’s hitting in the middle of our order, obviously a very important part of our lineup. It’s not just today," manager David Bell said. "This has been a process for him, even from Opening Day, where he’s been hitting the ball hard. I think now he’s seeing the ball even better, getting into deep counts, getting ahead in the count, walking a little bit and continuing to hit the ball hard."

Since entering the week batting .162 on Tuesday, the 37-year-old Votto is 10-for-23 (.435) with three home runs and seven RBIs, and he has raised his average to .267.

Against Bieber, Votto hit a two-out single in the first inning. In a touch of irony, with two outs in the third inning, he rolled a tapper with a 62.8 mph exit velocity past third base for an unlikely double. Votto entered the day with a .222 batting average on balls in play (BABIP), despite having one of the highest hard-hit percentages among Reds hitters. Over his first 12 games, only four of the 14 balls he struck with 100-plus mph exit velocity went for a hit.

"I think hitters often say they never really even out," Bell said. "That’s true, so every one like that you can get, you will absolutely take. He’s definitely hit the ball hard and right at fielders, so that was nice to see. That goes from an out to a hit and all of a sudden, even for Joey, you can go up to the plate even more confident next time. He deserves it, there’s no question.”

Cincinnati forged a one-out rally against Bieber in the fifth inning with singles from pinch-hitter Mark Payton and Jesse Winker. Votto lined a one-out double to right field that scored both runners and cut the deficit to two runs.

"Man, it's awesome," Winker said of Votto's resurgence. "I just try to get on as much as I can for him and then just put my head down and go, because everything he's hitting right now is a bullet and every time he's up there at the plate, fireworks are about to go off. It's very fun. It's very cool to see him hammering the ball."

Opening the bottom of the eighth inning, Bieber finally prevailed when he struck out Votto. Two batters later, Tyler Naquin hit a first-pitch homer to center field.

"He's definitely hot right now. He's one of the greats," Bieber said of Votto. "His bat-to-ball is uncanny, and he'll make you pay. I felt like I executed some good pitches to him, and he was able to put the bat on the ball and make me pay for it.

"And then I threw him four fastballs there with runners on second and third, and was kind of pitching around him, kind of not. But I wanted to challenge him. I didn't want to walk him. And he put the bat on the ball and placed it in a good spot. Those are where those two runs came from, but it was nice to bounce back and keep him from a 4-for-4 day at least.”

Miley takes the loss
Reds starting pitcher Wade Miley came into the day with 11 scoreless innings over his first two starts. Miley's streak ended with two outs in the first inning, when José Ramírez gave Cleveland a 1-0 lead with a home run to left field on a 3-0 pitch.

"The homer to José, [I] tried to go cutter up-and-in in a 3-0 count, just to get back in the count, and he got me," Miley said. "We can live with solo homers, but the three-run homer hurt."

Two-out trouble plagued Miley again in the fourth inning. Following back-to-back singles, Roberto Pérez lifted a 3-1 changeup to center field for a three-run homer and a 4-0 lead.

"Not terribly located, just for the situation," Miley said. "I started him off with it. He put a pretty good swing and fouled it off. I went a little bit farther off the plate, and he took that one."

It was only the Reds’ second loss in nine home games, and their first since Opening Day. At 9-6, they are still on top in the National League Central.