Chase Burns tossed five one-hit innings and struck out seven, and the host Cincinnati Reds plated a pair of runs to back him up during a 2-0 victory over the Pittsburgh Pirates on Monday night.
Burns (1-0) threw 78 pitches and walked three, but didn’t surrender a hit until Spencer Horwitz’s single to lead off the top of the fifth. Burns worked around the trouble when, after Nick Gonzales grounded into a fielder’s choice, he struck out Henry Davis and Oneil Cruz.
The Tennessee product, who appeared in 13 games and made eight starts for Cincinnati last year, earned his first major league victory.
Cincinnati provided Burns all the cushion it would need to win its third in a row following an Opening Day loss to the Boston Red Sox. The Reds scored both runs in the bottom of the fourth off Pirates starter Braxton Ashcraft (0-1).
Elly De La Cruz singled to lead off the inning, but was thrown out trying to steal second. Ashcraft walked Sal Stewart, who went to third on a single by Eugenio Suarez, and scored on a sacrifice fly by Spencer Steer.
Will Benson added an insurance run when he roped a triple to right field to score Suarez.
Ashcraft threw 87 pitches, and finished with a tough-luck quality start after throwing six innings, and allowing only those two runs. He gave up four hits and four walks and struck out three.
The Pirates failed to string together victories after Sunday’s first victory and continued to struggle at the plate, leaving eight on base and going 0-for-6 with runners in scoring position.
Brandon Lowe and Ryan O’Hearn, two of Pittsburgh’s key offseason acquisitions it made hoping to energize what was one of the worst lineups in baseball in 2025, are the only ones hitting consistently through the team’s first four games. Lowe reached base three times — twice via walks — and O’Hearn also had a hit and two walks.
O’Hearn’s second walk followed Marcell Ozuna’s leadoff walk in the top of the ninth to give Pittsburgh a late threat. But Reds’ reliever Connor Phillips picked up his first career save after striking out Jared Triolo, inducing a fly ball out from Horwitz and ending the game when Matt McLain caught a Gonzales pop up in short right despite a minor collision with Benson.
