Pirates no-hit, but still beat Reds, 1-0

The Pirates could not muster a hit against the Reds. They didn't need it.

And second baseman Josh VanMeter, in fact, called it after the seventh inning. So it was only fitting that it was him making a play to his left to close it in the ninth and, in a roundabout way, no-hit his own club.

"It’s a heck of a situation," VanMeter said with a smile afterwards.

That might be underselling it.

Thanks to an outstanding performance by José Quintana and Ke'Bryan Hayes beating out a potential double-play in the eighth, the Pirates were able to win despite not registering a hit against the Reds Sunday at PNC Park, winning 1-0.

"What a win," David Bednar, the last man to record an out in the no-hitter with his spotless top of the ninth, told me. "We're a scrappy bunch."

"We'll take the win," Derek Shelton said. "Sometimes they don't look the same, but they all count the same."

It is the sixth time in baseball history a team was no-hit and won, most recently done June 28, 2008 when the Dodgers beat the Angels and Dodgers Stadium.

It's the second time in Shelton's tenure as Pirates manager that his team has been no-hit, the other coming August 25, 2020 against Lucas Giolito and the White Sox. 

"This one definitely feels better than the other one," Shelton said.

Reds starter Hunter Greene was, as one could imagine, outstanding. He worked almost exclusively with two pitches: An upper-90s fastball and his slider, the latter of which he threw 65 times. 

"That slider's different," Shelton said. "Different in like new from what he was throwing at the beginning of the year."

"His breaking ball has come a long way," VanMeter, who played with Greene at the Reds' alternate training site in 2020, said. "Him throwing the breaking ball for strikes made the heater even better. The heater is electric already. The ability for him to throw strikes with the breaking ball kind of in any count made it difficult today, to be honest.”

The rookie was a bit wild though, walking five over his 7 1/3 innings. Reds manager David Bell kept him even as his pitch count got high, and his but was pulled after walking Rodolfo Castro on his 111th pitch and Michael Perez on pitch No. 118.

"I'm not gonna lie, I didn't know [if I was going to be taken out]," Greene told reporters after the game. "I felt like somebody was going to come up to me at some point. But I also didn't want my mind to go there because I wanted to stay locked in and not think about myself coming out of the game. I wanted to keep going out there."

Art Warren was brought in relief, and after walking Ben Gamel on four pitches, Hayes rolled a ground ball to second, but was able to reach the first base bag before the relay got to Colin Moran.

That finally gave the Pirates a tally, which was all they needed because of Quintana.

Mixing all four of his pitches equally and effectively, Quintana spun an 89 pitch gem as well, allowing just three hits and a walk, striking out five.

"I knew what was happening after the fourth," Quintana said. "You keep focusing on getting the first out in every inning and keep fighting for my game. You never know what’s going to happen after. Like I said, the results is right there. I felt really good today. I think he threw the ball better than me. It’s a little weird to get a loss like that."

Greene took that loss in stride in his postgame availability. The Pirates are doing the same.

"As long as we win, it doesn’t really matter," VanMeter said. "In the game of baseball, it seems like you see something new every day. It was a fun one.”

• For anyone wondering if this counts as a no-hitter, here's the official designation from the Elias Sports Bureau: "From the Pirates’ perspective, they were no-hit in a regulation-length game. From the Reds’ perspective, it would go in the record book as a 'no hitter of fewer than 9 innings,' similar to what Madison Bumgarner did in the 7-inning game last year."

So the Pirates were no-hit. The Reds didn't throw a full no-hitter. Makes sense, right?

• Quintana reached one of most prestigious plateau's for a player Sunday: 10 full years of service time. Doing so gives him a full pension upon retirement.

The team celebrated the accomplishment Saturday before the game:

"It means a lot," Quintana said. "A long way to be here in the United States for the first time, coming here with huge dreams. My family, I’m proud of that. The people I’ve been around, I say thank you to everybody that helped me a lot during this time. It means a lot after you take the “W.” We won the game. That’s special. I’m never going to forget this day."

• Some injury news from general manager Ben Cherington's radio show on 93.7 The Fan: Kevin Newman (groin) is expected to start a rehab assignment this week. Additionally, Miguel Yajure experienced lower back/hip discomfort at the end of his start for Class AAA Indianapolis Saturday. He is being evaluated.

THE ESSENTIALS

• Boxscore
• Live file
• Standings
• Statistics
• Schedule
• Scoreboard

THE HIGHLIGHTS

THE INJURIES

• 10-day injured list: OF Jake Marisnick (thumb), SS Kevin Newman (groin)

• 60-day injured list: OF Greg Allen (hamstring), RHP Blake Cederlind (UCL), RHP Nick Mears (elbow surgery), Roberto Pérez (hamstring)

THE LINEUPS

Shelton's card:

1. Ben Gamel, LF
2. Ke'Bryan Hayes, 3B
3. Bryan Reynolds, CF
4. Daniel Vogelbach, DH
5. Yoshi Tsutsugo, 1B
6. Josh VanMeter, 2B
7. Jack Suwinski, RF
8. Rodolfo Castro, SS
9. Michael Perez, C

And for David Bell's crew:

1. Matt Reynolds, SS
2. Brandon Drury, 3B
3. Tommy Pham, LF
4. Mike Moustakas, DH
5. Albert Almora Jr., CF
6. Tyler Naquin, DH
7. Aramis Garcia, C
8. Kyle Farmer, 2B
9. Colin Moran, 1B

THE SCHEDULE

The Pirates are heading to Chicago to start a three-game set starting Monday. Wade Miley (0-0, 9.00) will go for the Cubs, with first pitch coming at 7:40 p.m. Eastern. The Pirates have yet to announce a starter.

THE CONTENT

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