PITTSBURGH (AP) — This trade was too good : 0xbt

PITTSBURGH (AP) — This trade was too good

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    for Joey Votto to turn down.The Cincinnati Reds star first baseman spotted a fan sitting along the first base line Monday at PNC Park wearing a T-shirt that read “Votto for President.” It was from a Nike promotional campaign in 2012 and Votto hadn’t kept any of the shirts.Votto got the shirt Michael Taylor Jersey , but wound up with little else, shut down by Trevor Williams and the Pittsburgh Pirates 5-1.In the middle of the fourth inning, Votto walked over to the fan and asked for the shirt, offering an autographed jersey in return. The man agreed and the suddenly bare-chested fan and Votto exchanged first bumps along with Labor Day gifts.“I was trying to find (the T-shirt) for a while and I was excited to see if I could trade a jersey for a shirt and he obliged,” Votto said.“He was willing to take his shirt off in the middle of the stands and thanks to him for being willing to do that,” he said.That was the highlight of the day for Votto, who went 1 for 4 and grounded into a double play as the Reds lost for the ninth time in 12 games.Trevor Williams (12-9) continued his stretch of strong starts by pitching 6 2/3 scoreless innings. He allowed five hits while striking out four and walking one.Williams improved to 6-2 with a 0.66 ERA in his last nine starts, giving up four runs in 54 2/3 innings. It was his ninth outing of at least five innings without allowing a run this season.“It’s trusting my stuff and being able to put the fastball where I want to put it,” Williams said. “We go into every start knowing the fastball command is going to be there and everything comes off that. It’s fun to throw the ball to all four quadrants of the strike zone.”Adam Frazier had career high-tying four hits, including a solo home run off Matt Harvey (6-8) in the first and a two-run single in the seventh that stretched the Pirates’ lead to 5-0. Frazier also had a double and three RBIs.Pittsburgh’s Gregory Polanco and Cincinnati’s Scooter Gennett homered and had two hits each.Polanco hit a two-run shot in the sixth inning that made it 3-0.Gennett http://www.nationalsfanproshop.com/authentic-shawn-kelley-jersey , the NL batting leader with a .320 average, broke up the Pirates’ shutout bid with a solo drive off Kyle Crick in the eighth. Gennett also doubled in the first inning, but Williams worked out of a second-and-third jam with one out by striking Eugenio Suarez and getting Scott Schebler to fly out.“He’s kind of like the guy who can get you a stolen base when you need a stolen base,” Pittsburgh manager Clint Hurdle said of Williams. “He had four strikeouts today, but he can get you a punchout when you need a punchout.”Harvey surrendered three runs and seven hits in six innings with three strikeouts and no walks.“It was one of those (starts) where you look back and the numbers obviously don’t go with how the game went but two pitches definitely cost me,” Harvey said.TRAINER’S ROOMPirates: C Elias Diaz (strained right hamstring) missed his third straight game.TRAHAN DEBUTReds SS Blake Trahan was 1 for 3 in his major league debut, hitting a single off Williams in the seventh inning. He was promoted from Triple-A Louisville on Saturday.UP NEXTReds: LHP Cody Reed (0-1, 3.26 ERA) will make his third start and 13th relief appearance of the season Tuesday night after limiting Milwaukee to one run in 4 2/3 innings in his last outing.Pirates: RHP Joe Musgrove (5-8, 3.80 ERA) is 1-4 in his last six starts despite a 3.65 ERA. CHICAGO (AP) — It’s purely about the math for Anthony Rizzo and the Chicago Cubs.A three-game lead is better than a one-game advantage, and that was all that mattered Wednesday.Rizzo homered Trea Turner Jersey , drove in three runs and stole two bases in his return to the cleanup spot, and Chicago beat the Milwaukee Brewers 8-4 to strengthen its hold on the NL Central.The Cubs bounced back nicely from their 7-0 loss in the opener of the two-game series, improving to 9-4 against the Brewers this year. But they have six more games left in the season series and St. Louis is gaining quickly, so Rizzo and company coolly packed up their three-game advantage over the second-place Brewers and got ready for a six-game trip.It’s just about the numbers in the middle of August.“I think early on we knew it was going to come down to the wire,” Rizzo said, “so I don’t see us or any team pulling away like crazy. Winning games versus our division is always big, and this one was nice.”Jason Heyward added three hits and two RBIs as Chicago moved 19 games over .500, matching its season high. David Bote had two hits, scored twice and made a terrific barehanded play at third base in his first action since he hit a game-ending grand slam in Sunday night’s 4-3 victory over Washington.Kyle Hendricks (9-9) struck out eight in six-plus innings on his bobblehead day, providing a lift for the Cubs after Jon Lester and Jose Quintana struggled in recent starts.“Psychologically http://www.nationalsfanproshop.com/authentic-matt-wieters-jersey , I mean obviously there was a lot of folks that would have been running for the hills had we lost,” manager Joe Maddon said. “The fact that you win the game, it settles down that method. There’s still a long way to go.”Milwaukee had a chance to inch closer to Chicago, but instead lost for the fourth time in six games. Junior Guerra (6-8) lasted just 3 2/3 innings, and first baseman Eric Thames committed an error that helped set up a run.“It was definitely a hard game,” Guerra said. “Some of the things just didn’t go our way today.”The Brewers, who are in position for a wild card, also lost left fielder Ryan Braun and catcher Manny Pina to injuries. Braun departed with tightness on the right side of his rib cage, and Pina hurt his left shoulder when he collided with Javier Baez while he was diving back to second in the seventh.Pina stayed in after the play and scored on Mike Moustakas’ single. But Erik Kratz took over behind the plate in the bottom half of the inning.“We’re going to take him to Milwaukee for tests tomorrow, but he was adamant about staying in the game Joe Blanton Jersey ,” manager Craig Counsell said. “It’s just kind of precautionary. So we’ll get some tests and we’ll see.”Braun is considered day to day. He got hurt trying to make a sliding catch on Heyward’s RBI double in the third.“I don’t anticipate making a quick move with this one, but if it lingers, we’re going to have to make a move,” Counsell said.Rizzo, who had been leading off, drove a 0-1 pitch from Guerra into the basket in left for a two-run shot in the first. The big first baseman also blooped a run-scoring single into center in the Cubs’ three-run fourth, helped by a partly cloudy sky that made life difficult for each team all afternoon.The Brewers closed to 7-4 on Hernan Perez’s RBI single in the seventh. But they wasted a chance for more when Travis Shaw popped out and Jonathan Schoop lined to left with the bases loaded, ending the inning.Albert Almora Jr. then led off the bottom half of the inning with a line drive into the bleachers in left . It was his first homer since June 28 and No. 5 on the year.MINOR MOVESThe Cubs acquired minor league outfielder Terrance Gore from Kansas City for a player to be named or cash. He was assigned to Triple-A Iowa.The speedy Gore is 0 for 11 in 49 major league games. But he has scored 14 times and swiped 21 bases.TRAINER’S ROOMBrewers: RHP Jimmy Nelson is unlikely to return this season after he had shoulder surgery in September, according to Counsell. … RHP Zach Davies, who is coming back from an inflamed right rotator cuff and tight lower back Howie Kendrick Jersey , could make another rehab appearance after he starts for Triple-A Colorado Springs on Thursday.UP NEXTBrewers: Following a day off, RHP Freddy Peralta (5-3, 4.47 ERA) faces Cardinals RHP Luke Weaver (6-10, 4.66 ERA) on Friday night in the opener of a big weekend series in St. Louis. Peralta was tagged for seven runs in three-plus innings in a 10-1 loss at Atlanta on Friday night.Cubs: Lester (12-5, 3.89 ERA) pitches Thursday night in the opener of a four-game series at Pittsburgh. He is 0-3 with a 10.32 ERA in five starts since the All-Star break. RHP Ivan Nova (7-6, 4.42 ERA) gets the ball for the Pirates.