CINCINNATI — Tucker Barnhart picked a good time to get the better of Arizona reliever Archie Bradley.
“I’ve always had trouble with Archie Bradley, since the lower minors,” the Reds catcher said Saturday night. “I faced him at every stop. He’s a good pitcher and I respect the hell out of him. He’s gotten me more times than I’ve gotten him.
But with the Reds trailing 3-2 in the eighth inning and Barnhart pinch-hitting, Barnhart had Bradley where he wanted him.
“I was looking for something out over the plate that I could get to the outfield for Geno to score,” Barnhart said.
He did better than that, knocking a double into the gap in left center to score Eugenio Suarez and Curt Casali and igniting a four-run rally for a 6-3 win over the Diamondbacks.
Bradley (3-4) hit Suarez with a pitch to lead off the inning and walked Casali with two outs. Billy Hamilton and Joey Votto followed Barnhart with RBI singles off T.J. McFarland.
Hamilton put himself into scoring position by stealing second, and the D-backs walked Jose Peraza to pitch to Votto.
Reds starter Matt Harvey fanned seven in seven innings, marking his longest outing of the year and highest strikeout total since he had seven on June 10, 2016, with the Mets. He also hit an RBI single in the fourth.
“Harvey got better as the game went on,” Reds interim manager Jim Riggleman said. “He’s done that quite a bit. He gave up some hard-hit balls early and around the fourth or fifth inning he settled in. He got in a little trouble but managed his way out of trouble. His best inning was the seventh.”
Amir Garrett (1-2) got the final out of the eighth for the win. Raisel Iglesias pitched the ninth for his 23rd save and second in two nights.
The Diamondbacks, who began the night tied for the NL West lead, lost back-to-back games for the first time in more than two weeks. Eduardo Escobar hit a two-run homer, his first since being traded from Minnesota to the Diamondbacks, and David Peralta also connected.
In their last six series against first-place teams, the Reds have won five and split one.
Amir Garrett (1-2) got the final out of the eighth. Raisel Iglesias pitched the ninth for his 23rd save and second in two nights.
Arizona starter Robbie Ray left after five innings with the score tied for his fifth straight no-decision. The left-hander, who hasn't won in eight starts since June 27, allowed two runs on four hits with two walks and six strikeouts.
LATE START
The first pitch was delayed 40 minutes by rain for Great American Ball Park’s 11th delay of the season, totaling 13 hours, 53 minutes. That includes the delay before the April 3 game against the Cubs was postponed.
FAST START
The first play of the game was Peralta’s fly ball to Dilson Herrera, who was making his first professional start and just his third appearance in left field. He caught the routine fly ball.
RAY OF HOPE
Ray’s one-out double in the fifth was his first hit of the season in 27 at bats.
TRAINER’S ROOM
Diamondbacks: Hamilton’s eighth-inning hit grazed McFarland, but he stayed in the game.
UP NEXT
Arizona right-hander Zack Godley (12-6) and Cincinnati right-hander Luis Castillo (6-9) pitch in the series finale.
