When Brewers pitchers went over the strengths and weaknesses

Cincinnati’s hitters to prepare for their series Austin Bryant Jersey , they included reliever Michael Lorenzen in the mix.

They need to do more studying.

Lorenzen hit the second grand slam by a Reds pitcher in a week – and his third homer in his last three at-bats – as Cincinnati pulled away to a 12-3 victory Saturday, ending a seven-game losing streak against Milwaukee.

Lorenzen’s pinch-hit grand slam off Jacob Barnes in the seventh inning completed an eight-run rally, Cincinnati’s biggest of the season. Lorenzen’s fifth career homer drew a curtain call from the crowd of 24,640.

”It was a surreal feeling, for sure,” Lorenzen said. ”I love this game and everything about it.”

It was the reliever’s second homer in the series. He also had a solo shot Friday during Milwaukee’s 8-2 win.

”The guy’s swinging the bat really well, that’s for sure,” Brewers manager Craig Counsell said. ”We treat him as a position player. We covered him in scouting meetings. We’re going to have to make some adjustments.”

One week earlier, Reds starter Anthony DeSclafani hit a grand slam off Cubs left-hander Brian Duensing at Great American Ball Park.

Lorenzen avoided the temptation to swing at a slider, and then hit a fastball deep to left field.

”The Reds have always put together some good-hitting pitchers, going back to Travis Wood and those guys,” Brewers catcher Erik Kratz said. ”You have to know who those guys are and where they want the ball and not throw it there.”

Tyler Mahle struck out a career-high 12 batters in 5 2/3 innings Rashan Gary Jersey , three shy of the Reds’ rookie record. David Hernandez (3-0) pitched the top of the seventh.

The Reds fanned 18 batters, a club record for a nine-inning game.

The Brewers’ depleted bullpen couldn’t hold a one-run lead in the seventh. Cincinnati’s first eight batters reached safely against three relievers, with left-hander Mike Zagurski (0-1) taking the loss in his first major league appearance since 2013.

The NL Central leaders also were missing two starting position players. Christian Yelich left Thursday’s game with back tightness, and Ryan Braun came out of Friday’s game with the same issue. Counsell said Braun could be available on Sunday.

Eric Thames homered off Mahle, his 14th home run in 22 career games against Cincinnati. Thames hit 10 last year, the most by a Brewers player against the Reds in one season.

LORENZEN LORE

The last pinch-hit grand slam by a Reds player came from Chris Heisey on April 13, 2014, against Tampa Bay. Lorenzen’s three homers this season are the most by a Reds pitcher since Micah Owings had three in 2009. The last major league pitcher to homer in three straight at-bats was Colorado’s Mike Hampton in 2001.

POWER SURGE

In the last eight days, Reds pitchers have produced four homers – three by Lorenzen, one by DeSclafani. For the season, Lorenzen is 4 for 6 with three homers and six RBIs.

MAHLE’S STRIKEOUTS

Mahle’s 12 strikeouts were the most by a Reds pitcher since Amir Garrett also fanned 12 Orioles on April 19, 2017. The club record for strikeouts by a rookie is 15 by Gary Nolan on June 7 Darnell Savage Jr. Jersey , 1967, against the Giants.

TRADING PLACES

With the game out of hand, Kratz moved to the mound for the eighth inning – his third career pitching appearance – and gave up a pair of runs.

”I’d rather catch nine innings and do high-fives,” he said.

REDS DEAL

The Reds sent minor league catcher Joe Hudson to the Angels for cash. The 27-year-old Hudson has never played in the majors. He batted .235 with no homers and three RBIs in 16 games for Triple-A Louisville this season.

TRAINER’S ROOM

Brewers: RHP Zach Davies had a setback in what was expected to be his final minor league rehab assignment as he recovers from a sore shoulder. He lasted only three innings and gave up 10 runs and three hits for Class A Wisconsin on Friday night, leaving after just 48 pitches because of a sore back.

Reds: RHP Homer Bailey will make his fourth rehab start Tuesday for Triple-A Louisville. He’s been sidelined since June 2 because of a sore right knee. Bailey is 1-7 with a 6.68 ERA.

UP NEXT

Brewers: Freddy Peralta (3-0) makes his fifth start. The Brewers are 4-0 in his starts. Opponents are batting .093 against the right-hander.

Reds: Matt Harvey (3-5) makes his 10th start for the Reds, who got him from the Mets in a trade for catcher Devin Mesoraco on May 8. Harvey has allowed six runs in his last three starts spanning 17 2/3 innings.

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CLEVELAND — Cleveland Indians starting pitchers lead the American League in wins with a 44-23 record, and they’re second with an ERA of 3.39.

Cleveland’s remarkable starting pitching depth will be on display Sunday afternoon at Progressive Field in the finale of a three-game series with the Oakland Athletics. The teams split the first two games, with Oakland winning 6-3 on Saturday to snap Cleveland’s five-game winning streak.

Rookie Shane Bieber will start Sunday for the Indians. In a combined 17 starts for Cleveland and Triple-A Columbus, Bieber is 10-1 with a 1.77 ERA — and he’s the No. 5 starter in the Indians’ rotation.

The rotation is led by two-time Cy Young Award winner Corey Kluber and Trevor Bauer, who ranks third in the AL in strikeouts and innings pitched and is fifth in ERA.

The No. 3 starter is Carlos Carrasco, a 17-game winner last year when he finished fourth in the Cy Young Award voting. The No. 4 starter is Mike Clevinger, who in 38 starts since the beginning of the 2017 season is 18-7 with a 3.07 ERA.

“Good baseball starts with good starting pitching Elgton Jenkins Jersey ,” Indians manager Terry Francona said. “Having good starting pitching always enhances your chances to win, and we’ve got five very good starting pitchers.”

Bieber is the newest addition to that rotation, having replaced Josh Tomlin in the No. 5 spot. Like Tomlin, Bieber’s calling card is impeccable control. In his 17 starts between Cleveland and Columbus, Bieber has pitched 107 innings and has 101 strikeouts and 11 walks.

In his five starts with the Indians, Bieber is 4-0 with a 2.97 ERA. His last start was the worst of the five, but he still won the game. On July 3, he was a 6-4 winner over Kansas City, pitching six innings and giving up four runs and nine hits with two strikeouts and one walk.

Sunday will be Bieber’s first career start against Oakland.

The A’s on Sunday will activate left-hander Brett Anderson (0-2, 7.63 ERA) off the disabled list and he will make his first start since May 18. Anderson was removed from that start after one inning because of a sore shoulder and placed on the disabled list the next day. In four starts before the injury, he was 0-2 with a 7.63 ERA.

Anderson will make his first appearance against the Indians since Aug. 27, 2012 Jace Sternberger Jersey , when he pitched seven scoreless innings and gave up two hits in a 3-0 win. Only two players in Cleveland’s lineup that day are still with the Indians: Michael Brantley and Jason Kipnis.

In four career starts against Cleveland, Anderson is 2-0 with a 0.96 ERA.

The A’s on Saturday made a roster move, putting outfielder Matt Joyce on the 10-day disabled list with a lumbar strain, the second time this season that Joyce has spent time on the DL with the same back condition.

To replace Joyce on the roster, the A’s recalled outfielder Nick Martini from Triple-A. In 73 games with Nashville, Martini was hitting .308 with six home runs and 40 RBIs. This is his third stint with the A’s this year. In the first two, he was 1-for-10 with one RBI in five games.