Sunshine foreshadows Reds' breakthrough to end 6-game skid

CINCINNATI -- The first time the Reds endured a six-game losing streak in April, a team meeting was held that ultimately helped turn their season around. Then, Cincinnati was a young, rebuilding team still seeking an identity.

During the Reds’ latest six-game losing streak, their third of that length this season, no meeting was held. Cincinnati's players already knew themselves and didn't try to overthink it, or overdo it.

On the field, that confidence perhaps parlayed into a much-needed streak-ending 5-2 win over Miami on Monday at Great American Ball Park, where there were a lot of step-up moments.

“I feel like, on a consistent basis, the guys are optimistic, focused on the next day, focused on the next opportunity to learn, grow as players and ultimately win," said first baseman Joey Votto, who hit his 13th home run of the season in the fourth inning. "Oftentimes, when we’re not going through good stretches, I get the sense that they can’t wait for the next opportunity as opposed to feeling the colder stretch.”

During a third-inning at-bat in a 2-2 count, TJ Friedl noticed the sunshine emerging through the dark clouds for the first time all day. It could have been either a good omen or a problematic situation.

Friedl knew that the sun's glare off the glass of the center-field batter's-eye suites usually makes it tough to see some right-handers' outside pitches. When rookie Eury Pérez fired an inside fastball, Friedl pulled it to the right-field corner for a two-run triple to give the Reds a 2-1 lead.

“Maybe that’s just the metaphor,” Friedl said. “Sunshine comes out and 'two-run triple,’ and the boys are off.”

After his headfirst slide into third base, Friedl yelled and raised his arms.

“Just maybe, the biggest at-bat of the year," manager David Bell said. “When things aren’t going well, TJ … wants to be the guy in that moment that has the big at-bat and turns things around. I know it was just one hit but against that pitcher with what’s been happening here the last few days, the sun came out in the middle of the at-bat, there’s a lot of factors there that I just thought that was big right there. You could see the emotion that came out when TJ made it to third base. All of those reasons came out in that reaction.”

In the fourth inning against Pérez, Christian Encarnacion-Strand and Votto slugged back-to-back home runs -- on consecutive pitches. An insurance run came in the seventh thanks to Friedl. After singling, he stole second base and advanced on a throwing error, then scored when Spencer Steer followed with a sacrifice fly.

“As we were playing that game with the lead, there was no stress," Friedl said. "There was no panic. There was no, ‘OK guys, we have to hang on to this.’ It was, ‘Keep playing our game, adding on and doing what we’ve done all year and just close this game out.’”

Meanwhile, rookie lefty starting pitcher Brandon Williamson's performance was also a boost as he tied a career high with 6 2/3 innings and set a new one with nine strikeouts. Williamson allowed one earned run and three hits -- including Jorge Soler's first-inning solo homer -- while not walking a batter.

It was only the second time that a starter not named Graham Ashcraft pitched at least six innings for the Reds since July 29, when Luke Weaver did it vs. the Dodgers.

“It’s probably the best start of my life, honestly," Williamson said. "Because what you do at High-A, college or high school doesn’t really compare to what you do in the big leagues."

Following each of their previous six-game losing streaks -- from April 18-24 and going into and out of the All-Star break in July -- the Reds rebounded with five-game win streaks.

Certainly breaking a streak is a relief, but there's work to do as the 60-55 Reds try to battle for a postseason berth.

"As we went through each game of these six games, everything stayed the same. Nothing changed," Bell said. "We knew this would come where we would get back on track. What doesn’t change is we come back out tomorrow and [keep] moving forward continuing to find ways to get better. That has to continue.

"There’s no other way to approach it. That really keeps things as consistent as you can. We know that to get to where we’re ultimately trying to get to, it’s not about a short period of time. It’s about steady improvement all year.”