Pirates stage ‘79 reunion, then beat Reds 12-2 behind Doumit, Jones

Shades of ‘79 as Pirates beat Reds 12-2

PITTSBURGH — Ryan Doumit homered, doubled and drove in three runs to give Zach Duke some unaccustomed run support and the Pittsburgh Pirates pushed Cincinnati into last place in the NL Central by winning 12-2 on Saturday night.

After honoring 22 members of the World Series-winning 1979 Pirates before the game, a team headed for the franchise’s 17th consecutive losing season turned back the clock — if only for one night — with ‘79-like power, pitching and defense to win its fifth in a row.

The Pirates matched their longest winning streak of the season, previously reached May 16-20. The Reds lost their seventh in eight games to fall a half-game behind the Pirates, who had been in last place every day since June 19.

Garrett Jones also drove in three runs as the Pirates enjoyed a rare breakout night for Duke (10-11), who normally gets poor run support. The Pirates had won only one of Duke’s previous nine starts — he was 1-6 — and had scored only four runs in his four most recent starts.

Duke matched his career high for wins set when he went 10-15 in 2006, giving up two runs and eight hits in seven innings for his second victory since June 24. The Pirates scored only 10 runs while he was on the mound during his 11 losses.

With a nearly full house at PNC Park attracted by the ‘79 reunion and a postgame concert, the Pirates jumped on Justin Lehr (2-1) for three runs in the first with the help of four singles and kept adding on the runs. Doumit’s two-run drive, his seventh, came in the fifth and Jones’ two-run double made it 8-2 in the sixth.

Jones is 8 of 19 (.421) with eight RBIs during the winning streak.

Maybe the Pirates are taking a liking to the beltless, ‘79-style throwback uniforms they are wearing this weekend, as they’ve scored 17 runs in two nights against the Reds. The Pirates wore pinstriped uniform tops and black pants, one of nine different uniform combinations they wore 30 years ago.

Pirates left-hander Phil Dumatrait pitched a scoreless eighth inning in his first appearance since July 8, 2008. He had left shoulder surgery a year ago and has spent most of this season rehabilitating.

NOTES: Reds 3B Scott Rolen (concussion) will be activated off the 15-day disabled list Sunday. … The Pirates have homered nine times in five games after going five consecutive games without a homer. … Pittsburgh has won the first five games of a nine-game homestand. … Pirates LF Lastings Milledge stretched out to make a sliding catch of Joey Votto’s line drive into the left-center gap in the eighth. … The Pirates’ starting lineup began the game with a combined 43 homers, four fewer than major league leader Albert Pujols (39). … The Reds were 2 for 5 with runners in scoring position after going 1 for 23 in their previous four games. … Among the ‘79 Pirates attending were manager Chuck Tanner, Dave Parker, Bill Madlock, Phil Garner, Omar Moreno, Bert Blyleven, Kent Tekulve, Mike Easler, Lee Lacy, Ed Ott, Steve Nicosia, Grant Jackson, Don Robinson. Willie Stargell, the co-NL MVP that season, died on the day PNC Park opened in 2001. … The 12 runs matched the Pirates’ season high. They beat Washington 12-7 on May 18.