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When Brewers pitchers went over the strengths and weaknesses of Cincinnati’s hitters to prepare for their series Niklas Hjalmarsson Jersey , they included reliever Michael Lorenzen in the mix.

They need to do more studying.

Lorenzen hit the second grand slam by a Reds pitcher in a week – and his third homer in his last three at-bats – as Cincinnati pulled away to a 12-3 victory Saturday, ending a seven-game losing streak against Milwaukee.

Lorenzen’s pinch-hit grand slam off Jacob Barnes in the seventh inning completed an eight-run rally, Cincinnati’s biggest of the season. Lorenzen’s fifth career homer drew a curtain call from the crowd of 24,640.

”It was a surreal feeling, for sure,” Lorenzen said. ”I love this game and everything about it.”

It was the reliever’s second homer in the series. He also had a solo shot Friday during Milwaukee’s 8-2 win.

”The guy’s swinging the bat really well, that’s for sure,” Brewers manager Craig Counsell said. ”We treat him as a position player. We covered him in scouting meetings. We’re going to have to make some adjustments.”

One week earlier, Reds starter Anthony DeSclafani hit a grand slam off Cubs left-hander Brian Duensing at Great American Ball Park.

Lorenzen avoided the temptation to swing at a slider, and then hit a fastball deep to left field.

”The Reds have always put together some good-hitting pitchers, going back to Travis Wood and those guys,” Brewers catcher Erik Kratz said. ”You have to know who those guys are and where they want the ball and not throw it there.”

Tyler Mahle struck out a career-high 12 batters in 5 2/3 innings, three shy of the Reds’ rookie record. David Hernandez (3-0) pitched the top of the seventh.

The Reds fanned 18 batters, a club record for a nine-inning game.

The Brewers’ depleted bullpen couldn’t hold a one-run lead in the seventh. Cincinnati’s first eight batters reached safely against three relievers, with left-hander Mike Zagurski (0-1) taking the loss in his first major league appearance since 2013.

The NL Central leaders also were missing two starting position players. Christian Yelich left Thursday’s game with back tightness, and Ryan Braun came out of Friday’s game with the same issue. Counsell said Braun could be available on Sunday.

Eric Thames homered off Mahle, his 14th home run in 22 career games against Cincinnati. Thames hit 10 last year, the most by a Brewers player against the Reds in one season.

LORENZEN LORE

The last pinch-hit grand slam by a Reds player came from Chris Heisey on April 13, 2014 Oliver Ekman-Larsson Jersey , against Tampa Bay. Lorenzen’s three homers this season are the most by a Reds pitcher since Micah Owings had three in 2009. The last major league pitcher to homer in three straight at-bats was Colorado’s Mike Hampton in 2001.

POWER SURGE

In the last eight days, Reds pitchers have produced four homers – three by Lorenzen, one by DeSclafani. For the season, Lorenzen is 4 for 6 with three homers and six RBIs.

MAHLE’S STRIKEOUTS

Mahle’s 12 strikeouts were the most by a Reds pitcher since Amir Garrett also fanned 12 Orioles on April 19, 2017. The club record for strikeouts by a rookie is 15 by Gary Nolan on June 7, 1967, against the Giants.

TRADING PLACES

With the game out of hand, Kratz moved to the mound for the eighth inning – his third career pitching appearance – and gave up a pair of runs.

”I’d rather catch nine innings and do high-fives,” he said.

REDS DEAL

The Reds sent minor league catcher Joe Hudson to the Angels for cash. The 27-year-old Hudson has never played in the majors. He batted .235 with no homers and three RBIs in 16 games for Triple-A Louisville this season.

TRAINER’S ROOM

Brewers: RHP Zach Davies had a setback in what was expected to be his final minor league rehab assignment as he recovers from a sore shoulder. He lasted only three innings and gave up 10 runs and three hits for Class A Wisconsin on Friday night, leaving after just 48 pitches because of a sore back.

Reds: RHP Homer Bailey will make his fourth rehab start Tuesday for Triple-A Louisville. He’s been sidelined since June 2 because of a sore right knee. Bailey is 1-7 with a 6.68 ERA.

UP NEXT

Brewers: Freddy Peralta (3-0) makes his fifth start. The Brewers are 4-0 in his starts. Opponents are batting .093 against the right-hander.

Reds: Matt Harvey (3-5) makes his 10th start for the Reds, who got him from the Mets in a trade for catcher Devin Mesoraco on May 8. Harvey has allowed six runs in his last three starts spanning 17 2/3 innings.

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Coach Marvin Lewis got a two-year contract extension Tuesday, providing more chances to try to get the Cincinnati Bengals that playoff victory that has eluded him for 15 seasons.

The agreement came after a second straight losing season and two days of discussions with owner Mike Brown. Lewis has the second-longest active coaching tenure in the NFL, behind Bill Belichick’s 18 seasons with New England.

Unlike Belichick, who has won five Super Bowls and made two other appearances in the title game, Lewis is 0-7 in the playoffs, the worst coaching record in NFL history. The Bengals haven’t won a playoff game since the 1990 season, the sixth-longest streak of futility in league history.

Paul Brown Stadium was half-empty for the final home game, an indication fans had given up on the team and were hoping for change.

Instead, Brown decided to stay the course and keep Lewis Richard Panik Jersey , who wanted more say over the coaching staff and the roster if he stayed.

Brown’s aversion to change won out.

”Marvin has made significant contributions during his time here,” Brown said in a statement.

Lewis planned to meet the media on Wednesday. He said in a statement that he was committed ”to making the necessary improvements to put this team in the best position to win.”

Lewis has acknowledged that he would have been fired in any other NFL city. Instead, he’s gotten second and third chances – and now a 16th chance – to lead the Bengals to a postseason win. Brown, an owner who values loyalty, has decided to keep Lewis around.

It marks a stay-the-course coaching offseason for both of Ohio’s teams. The Browns are keeping coach Hue Jackson after they became only the second team in NFL history to go 0-16.

On Monday, Lewis said he was interested in staying only if he and ownership had a common vision for changes that needed to happen. He said the organization needs to do a better job building a roster that can contend for an AFC North title.

Lewis has by far the longest coaching tenure in team history – founder Paul Brown and Sam Wyche are tied for second at eight years – and a 125-119-3 record, including that 0-7 playoff mark.

Under Lewis, the Bengals have had some of their best regular seasons and some of the worst playoff moments.

The mastermind of Baltimore’s Super Bowl championship defense in 2000, Lewis came to Cincinnati before the 2003 season – a rare outside hire by the Brown family. Lewis turned the Bengals into a competitive team and then a playoff team after years of languishing as a laughingstock.

He hasn’t been able to win a playoff game, though. His best chance came in 2015, when the Bengals matched the franchise record with 12 wins and were in control in the final minutes of a playoff game against rival Pittsburgh at Paul Brown Stadium.

Lewis’ team unraveled, fumbling to give Pittsburgh a final chance and then committing two unthinkable penalties – Vontaze Burfict and Adam ”Pacman” Jones got 15-yard fouls – that set up the Steelers’ field goal for an 18-16 win. It was one of the worst meltdowns in NFL playoff history.

At yet, Lewis survived it. His team never recovered. The Bengals won only six games last season. When Lewis and Brown met afterward, they couldn’t agree on terms of an extension of his deal that ended after the 2017 season.

A 23-20 Monday night loss to Pittsburgh on Dec. 4 essentially ended the Bengals’ chances. Paul Brown Stadium was less than half-full for the final home game, a 26-17 victory over the Lions on Dec. 24. In the final game at Baltimore, the Bengals rallied for a 31-27 win that eliminated the Ravens.

The Bengals now have to sell tickets by convincing fans that things are changing, even if the head coach is the same.

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