CINCINNATI — While the St. Louis Cardinals’ labor-intensive struggles against lefties persisted, it took the Cincinnati Reds only a few swings — and a few swipes too, for good measure — to turn a tight contest into a rout that left the Cardinals more than fuming.They’re close to reeling. The Cardinals could not produce sustained rallies despite a flurry of early baserunners, unlike the Reds who did so in quick, emphatic gulps. Leadoff hitter Spencer Steer hit two home runs and dynamo talent Elly De La Cruz hit a homer, and with those three swings the Reds produced all of their runs in a 6-1 trouncing of the Cardinals on Monday at Great American Ball Park. The Cardinals’ seventh loss in their past 11 games puts them in jeopardy of being caught in the win column this week by the fourth-place Reds.All three of Cincinnati’s homers came against former Red and current Cardinals’ starter Sonny Gray. Steer’s second homer of the game was a three-run shot in the fifth inning that came moments after manager Oliver Marmol’s ejection and moments before Gray’s exit from the game after five innings. Reds starter Andrew Abbott (10-9) became the latest lefty to quiet the Cardinals’ offense.The Cardinals loaded the bases twice before the end of the third inning, but those innings that got away captured succinctly why they struggle so mightily against left-handed pitchers.It’s all about the thump. The Reds got it. The Cardinals lacked it.Without power vs. lefties they need a parade of hits to produce run.The odds line up against them.By the end of the third inning, the Cardinals had four hits and three other baserunners thanks to two walks and a hit batter and yet only a narrow lead. Reds lefty Abbott put himself into trouble after Paul Goldschmidt’s second-inning double by hitting the next batter and walking Jordan Walker. In his first plate appearance since returning to the majors, Walker loaded the bases and the Cardinals had a crack Abbott with the bases loaded.The inning ended when Pedro Pages hit into a double play.It took the Cardinals two singles and another walk to squeak across their first run. In the same inning they took that 1-0 lead, they had three singles, two of them with a runner in scoring position. But only one produced an RBI. Contrast that with what followed: The Reds took two swings to turn one ...
