Bronson Arroyo pitches Cincinnati Reds past Pittsburgh Pirates 4-1 before sparse crowd

Not many watch as Reds beat Pirates 4-1

PITTSBURGH — Bronson Arroyo limited Pittsburgh to one run over seven innings and the Cincinnati Reds completed their second sweep of the plummeting Pirates in less than a month, winning 4-1 on Thursday to push the Pirates closer to a 100-loss season.

Joey Votto had a two-run double following Drew Sutton’s RBI double in a four-run third inning against Charlie Morton (4-9) as the Reds won their eighth in a row against the last-place Pirates. The Reds are 15 games ahead of the Pirates in the NL Central standings after falling behind them following a loss on Aug. 22.

Since then, the fourth-place Reds are 21-10 — although they remain only one loss away from a ninth consecutive losing season — and the Pirates are 5-25.