Cincinnati Reds offense silent in loss to St. Louis Cardinals

ST. LOUIS –– With the tying run at the plate in the top of the eighth inning, Cincinnati Reds left fielder Jesse Winker hit a fly ball to deep center field. One batter later, right fielder Nick Castellanos hit a line drive down the third base line.

Both hard-hit balls were caught by the St. Louis Cardinals defense.

Despite another standout start from Reds left-hander Wade Miley, Cincinnati only had three hits and the Reds lost 2-0 in St. Louis on Saturday for their sixth consecutive defeat.

"The benefits of getting off to a good start is you're able to weather a six-game skid like this and only be a couple games under .500," catcher Tucker Barnhart said. "We are in a position where we feel like we're going to be just fine."

When the Reds made hard contact on Saturday, the Cardinals often made a standout play.

In the sixth inning, Winker and Castellanos both reached base with one-out singles, but the middle of the Reds order didn’t knock them in. First, first baseman Joey Votto flew out to the warning track. Then Cincinnati shortstop Eugenio Suárez’s sharp ground ball was fielded deep in the infield by Cardinals shortstop Paul DeJong, who made the play to first.

"We don't like getting shut out," manager David Bell said. "Today we weren't able to do that. But we're pleased overall with our offense, the way our hitters responded and the at-bats we're having."

More:For Cincinnati Reds pitcher Sonny Gray, 'the consistency of it has been inconsistent'

Over the Reds' first two times through the order, Cincinnati had only one hit and just five balls reached the outfield. For the second time in his six-year MLB career, Cardinals starting pitcher John Gant threw six scoreless innings, and he only allowed three hits.