'Tough night': Gutierrez struggles, bats cold

MIAMI -- Throughout the Reds' recent climb past San Diego for the lead in the final NL Wild Card playoff spot, it was a different star ultimately emerging from game to game. But in Saturday’s 6-1 loss to the Marlins at loanDepot park, that hero never answered the call.

Cincinnati couldn’t solve Marlins starter Sandy Alcantara, who went seven innings and set a career-high with 12 strikeouts, while a five-run first inning did in Reds rookie right-hander Vladimir Gutierrez.

“He has some of the best stuff in the game,” manager David Bell said. “Not only his stuff, but his whole presence. He knows how to pitch, how to use his stuff. He’s got it all. That made for a tough night for us.”

Location, location, location; it’s not just a real estate slogan. It’s a pitcher’s life blood and Gutierrez just couldn’t find it in a first inning that he was lucky to even get out of. Though velocity on his fastball and spin rate on his breaking pitches were both slightly up over average, Gutierrez fell behind batter after batter.

Marlins right fielder Jesús Sánchez punctuated the first-inning outburst with a two-run homer to center field, a blast that traveled 440 feet at an exit velocity of 111.6 mph and 24-degree launch angle.

Gutierrez lasted just three innings, allowing five runs on seven hits, snapping a string of six consecutive quality starts, which was the longest by a Reds pitcher since Sonny Gray equaled the feat during the 2019 season. It was also the longest by a Reds rookie pitcher since Raisel Iglesias had seven straight quality starts in 2015.

Dan Straily was the last Reds pitcher to turn in seven consecutive quality starts.

“I think he just kind of fell behind some guys early on and had to challenge in the strike zone,” catcher Tucker Barnhart said. “Guys just hit balls where guys weren’t playing. It was as simple as him not getting ahead as often as he usually does and having some poor luck.”

The Marlins loaded the bases in the first inning on Barnhart’s interference. It wasn’t called initially until Marlins manager Don Mattingly brought it to the attention of the umpiring crew, which went immediately to the headphones before making it official.

It was only the second error this season by Cincinnati catching, over 1,159 2/3 innings, both by Barnhart; both on catcher’s interference, and both against Miami. The first one, committed last week at Great American Ball Park, snapped Barnhart’s 161-game errorless streak, a club record for catchers. It was his first career catcher’s interference.

Barnhart summed up his, and the Reds’ evening by breaking his bat across his knee after striking out to end the sixth inning.

Adding injury to insult, Reds third baseman Mike Moustakas left the game in the middle of the second inning with right hip tightness.

Asdrúbal Cabrera, picked up on waivers from the D-backs just a day earlier, was his defensive replacement. In his first at-bat for the Reds, however, Cabrera struck out looking with the bases loaded to end the third inning.

In two stints on the injured list already this season, Moustakas has missed a total of 75 games. From April 20-26 he was on the 10-day IL with an illness unrelated to COVID-19, and from May 20-Aug. 5 he was on the IL with a right heel contusion.

“As of now, it’s day to day,” Bell said. "We’ll have to see. He definitely felt it on that first play of the game (a single past him to left field) and had a few other plays that inning that he looked better on. But after the inning and after his at-bat it just made sense to be cautious there, get him out of the game.

“He won’t be in the lineup tomorrow, but, hopefully, it’s day to day and he’ll be back in there available tomorrow.”