Nick Lodolo makes his 2026 debut but the Reds lose their eighth in a row

Lodolo worked efficiently into the sixth inning, but Yordan Alvarez hammered a 94.6 mph fastball out for a 407-foot, two-run homer for a 4-0 lead. The next batter, Isaac Paredes, doubled on the seventh pitch of his at-bat. Francona emerged from the dugout to end Lodolo's game.

The final line for Lodolo: 53 strikes on 78 pitches, five hits, four earned runs, a lone walk and two strikeouts.

The bottom line for the Reds: Against the grain of several recent pitcher injuries and in the midst of a losing streak that reached eight games in the series opener against Houston May 8 at Great American Ball Park, Lodolo's return from injury couldn't have been more welcome or more timely.

Lodolo's appearance alone couldn't spur the Reds to victory, though.

Reds' bats blanked by Astros starter Mike Burrows

The seven-game losing streak Cincinnati entered play with on May 8 featured defeats that took a variety of different forms. The slump started with a couple lopsided losses against the Pittsburgh Pirates. That was followed by four consecutive losses by a single run, snapping the Reds' 12-0 mark in games decided by two runs or less.

The Reds suffered their first shutout loss of what became an eight-game losing streak in the 10-0 loss to Houston, the American League West division's last-place team. The Astros entered the contest with a team ERA of 5.82, which was one of the worst in baseball.

The shutout was Houston's third of 2026 as it improved to 16-23.

Just five hits against the Astros contributed to the Reds dropping to 20-19 on the year, and remaining in the cellar of the National League Central division. On April 30, the Reds were 20-11 and in first place.

Cincinnati Reds first baseman Sal Stewart (27) singles to right field in the third inning of the MLB Interleague game between the Cincinnati Reds and the Houston Astros at Great American Ball Park in downtown Cincinnati on Friday, May 8, 2026.

Astros 26-year-old righty Mike Burrows stymied Cincinnati, holding the team to a lone extra-base hit. Elly De La Cruz doubled, and singled in the ninth. All the other hits were singles.

Cincinnati loaded the bases in the fourth inning. After JJ Bleday started the inning with a walk, Sal Stewart and Nathaniel Lowe singled with one out. But Spencer Steer flew out and Tyler Stephenson struck out to end the threat. The Reds finished the night 1-for-6 with runners in scoring position.

Burrows went seven innings and allowed only the three hits and the walk to Bleday while striking out six.

Catcher Jose Trevino, shown last week, has pitched in four of the Reds' past 10 games.

Matt McLain started the bottom of the eighth inning with a bloop single, and eventually moved into scoring position but was stranded. When the Reds came to bat in the ninth, the game had already gotten out of hand for the hosts.

Up, 5-0, entering the ninth inning, the Astros went ahead 9-0 on back-to-back homers. The first was a three-run homer by Zach Cole that landed on the netting above the visitors' bullpen in right field, and Christian Vazquez followed up with a solo blast that just cleared the left field wall.

Then, Reds catcher Jose Trevino emerged from the dugout to pitch the rest of the inning. Partly as a symptom of the recent injury squeeze on Cincinnati's pitching staff, plus the lopsided nature of recent defeats, the pitching appearance was Trevino's fourth in the last 10 games.

Trevino allowed one additional run in the ninth.

This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Nick Lodolo makes 2026 debut but the Reds lose their eighth in a row