Castillo ends losing skid as Reds top Pirates 4-2 in Game 1

PITTSBURGH (AP) — Luis Castillo pitched six strong innings to pick up his first victory in nearly a year as the Cincinnati Reds edged the Pittsburgh Pirates 4-2 in the first game of a doubleheader on Friday.

Castillo (1-5) struck out eight and walked two to earn his first win since Sept. 13, 2019. The 27-year-old, a 15-game winner and an All-Star last season, had dropped seven straight decisions.

“Going into a game, you have to have that confidence to win the game, regardless,” Castillo said via an interpreter. “So for me, it’s important that we win and especially if I’m going in and saying, 'OK, I’m going to win this game and my team is going to win as well.' So it’s important for me.”

Nick Castellanos hit his 11th home run for the Reds, a solo shot off Steven Brault (0-2) that gave Castillo the kind of support he's lacked most of this season. Entering Friday, the Reds had scored two runs or less in five of Castillo's seven starts. Raisel Iglesias worked the seventh for his fifth save.

Gregory Polanco doubled twice and drove in a run for Pittsburgh. Colin Moran added two hits and an RBI but the Pirates lost for the sixth time in their last eight games when they failed to take full advantage of early opportunities against Castillo. The Pirates put runners on second and third with no outs in the second and didn't score and failed to cross the plate after consecutive singles leading off the fourth.

“When I was able to get the three outs (in the second), that’s when I really got my confidence back,” Castillo said. “I felt really good throughout the game, but it’s really in the second when I got those three outs that I knew I had it today."

Castillo grew stronger as he went along. He retired eight of the last nine batters he faced and his 93rd and final pitch was a 98 mph fastball at the...

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