Reggie Taylor steals third base as the Expos' Chris Truby makes the late catch. (Brandi Stafford photo) | ZOOM |

        With the starting pitching the Reds received Saturday — Chris Reitsma gave up only one run and five hits in five innings — the bullpen, hitters and defense have to do their job and pull out a victory.

        Instead, they did none of that, and the Reds lost 5-2 to the Montreal Expos before 18,176 (43-degree game-time temperature) at Cinergy Field. The euphoria of the two-of-three opening series' victory over the highly touted Chicago Cubs has given way to a feeling that while these Reds could be better than last year, they aren't playing like it.

        They've lost two straight to the (supposedly) lowly Expos.

        If Reitsma keeps pitching the way he did Saturday, though, the Reds will win some games for him. Their bullpen had a breakdown in the sixth inning when reliever Luis Pineda threw one strike in 11 pitches and opened the door to a four-run inning that undid the Reds.

        “I felt great,” said Reitsma, who had engendered some concern in his last spring training start when his pitches were all over the place and he reported some elbow stiffness. (He has fractured that same elbow twice.)

        “I kept telling you guys, "April 1st, April 1st,'” Reitsma said. “I felt all along I'd be ready.”

        The Reds, who were tied 1-1 after five innings, squandered Reitsma's fine effort by giving up those four runs in the sixth without so much as a hit to the outfield. Pineda walked the first two batters he faced and appeared headed for walking a third, when he was pulled with a 2-0 count on pinch hitter Mike Mordecai, who was up there to bunt.

        “Unacceptable” is how Reds manager Bob Boone characterized it.

        There are no good losses, but when defeats do happen, the question that always has to be asked first is: “How was the starting pitching?”

        Because nothing is as critical to the Reds as starting pitching.

        The answer Saturday is the starting pitching was excellent.

Aaron Boone reacts to fumbling the ball and missing an out in the 6th inning. (Brandi Stafford photo) | ZOOM |

        “Chris could've gone longer,” manager Boone said. “He could probably go 100 (pitches. He threw 87). ... He worked out of two jams. That added some pitches. He's had the elbow thing, and it's his first game of the season. He hadn't pitched in six days. I wasn't going to push him much.”

        Right after Reitsma gave up his only run (wild pitch in the fifth, scoring Peter Bergeron from third), Reitsma snapped off a sharp, cutting fastball to strike out Chris Truby to get out of the jam.

        After Boone pulled Pineda in the sixth, Scott Sullivan walked Mordecai to load the bases but got Bergeron to ground into a force at home and then appeared to have struck out Jose Vidro on a sharp, 2-2 slider that was called ball three. A walk followed, the Reds were down 2-1, and the proverbial floodgates opened: Aaron Boone fielding error on a routine ball to third, infield single up the middle, sacrifice fly. Reds down 5-1. Ballgame.

        “If that 2-2 pitch goes the other way, you've got two outs and Aaron isn't as apt to rush it, trying to turn two (with a throw home),” Sullivan said. “That's the thing about baseball. A game can turn on one pitch or one swing of the bat.”

        The Reds' sidewinder threw well — “Sully pitched great,” manager Boone said — but had nothing to show for it.

        “I appreciate what he said, but I know that if I had really pitched great, I'd have been out of that inning with the game still tied,” Sullivan said. “That's my job there.”

        Deduct more points from the Reds for Reggie Taylor trying to score from third base with one out on Barry Larkin's fly ball to medium right with the Reds trailing 5-2 in the eighth inning.

        “He was told to stay,” Bob Boone said.

        Right fielder Vladimir Guerrero's eyes had to light up when he saw Taylor going. Guerrero has one of the best arms in the game and he gunned down Taylor by a wide margin.

        “I was trying to be aggressive — I thought I had a shot because it was over toward the line — and I wanted to go halfway, but I kind of got caught in between,” Taylor said. “I didn't want to just concede I had no chance on him. I knew who was out there. But, yes, it was a mental mistake. We were down by three runs and that run wouldn't have made a difference.”

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