Jeff Samardzija pitched eight stellar innings and got picked up by another Reds bullpen stumble with two Giants runs in the top of the eighth for a 3-1 victory Tuesday.
Reds reliever Caleb Cotham was close to escaping a jam when Brandon Belt was thrown out trying for second base on a single to left field. Cotham intentionally walked Brandon Crawford to face Kelby Tomlinson with runners on first and third base. Tomlinson bounced a slow roller to shortstop Ivan De Jesus Jr., who had no time to make a throw as Hunter Pence scored. Gregor Blanco followed with an RBI single to right field that made it a two-run game.
That gave the Reds bullpen a single-season record of 21 straight team games with at least one run allowed, snapping the previous record held by the 2013 Rockies.
Samardzija gave up one run and three hits over his eight innings with two walks and nine strikeouts. His only blemish was an Adam Duvall home run in the fifth inning. He retired 13 of his last 16 batters. Santiago Casilla notched the final three outs for the save. Cincinnati has dropped eight of its last nine games and 10 of the last 12.
“It was as good as I’ve seen Samardzija pitch, and I’ve seen him a lot and he’s a good pitcher,” Reds manager Bryan Price said. “He had it all working today.”
Samardzija, who has won three consecutive starts for the first time in his career, gave ample credit to Giants catcher Buster Posey for helping him maintain his effectiveness.
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