Pirates fall to Reds in what may be Burnett’s final regular-season start

PITTSBURGH _ The A.J. Burnett that first took the mound tonight was not the 38-year-old veteran of 17 seasons making the 430th and final regular-season start of his career.tmpplchld It was A.J. Jr., Burnett’s 14-year-old son, who with his 11-year-old brother, Ashton, threw out the first pitch.tmpplchld Andrew McCutchen and Neil Walker crouched at the plate to catch them. The four of them posed for a picture, and then it was the elder Burnett’s turn.tmpplchld The fans behind the Pirates’ dugout stood, waiting for him to emerge. One young fan, bundled in a stocking cap against the cold, windy night, positioned himself right above the dugout steps and waved a Batman flag. Five cameramen crouched outside the dugout, shooting away as Burnett climbed the steps for one final start, one final walk to the mound as Marilyn Manson played, one final subtle salute to Francisco Cervelli before he began his warm-up pitches.tmpplchld This is not a victory lap. The Pirates needed Saturday’s game to clinch home-field advantage against the Chicago Cubs in the NL wild-card game. Burnett gave them a chance, but their lineup fell short and the Pirates lost, 3-1, to the Cincinnati Reds at PNC Park.tmpplchld The Cubs won Saturdau, meaning the Pirates need to win Sunday or hope the Cubs lose to the Milwaukee Brewers for the wild-card game to take place in Pittsburgh. The Cubs hold the tiebreaker if they finish with the same record as the Pirates.tmpplchld Burnett might not be done. He could pitch in the NLDS if the Pirates advance _ the Pirates could use four starters unless they bring someone back on short rest. But he has said he will retire after this season.tmpplchld Joey Votto tipped his helmet at Burnett during his first at-bat of the game, but the Reds did not treat Burnett kindly. Eugenio Suarez singled in the first and reached third when Burnett’s pickoff throw got away. Votto’s grounder drove home Suarez. Brandon Phillips singled and stole second, scoring on Todd Frazier’s double.tmpplchld After the first, Burnett settled in. Tucker Barnhart hit a leadoff single in the second before Burnett recorded 13 consecutive outs. Burnett’s strikeout of Jay Bruce looking in the fourth was the 2,508th of his career, moving him past Hall of Famer Christy Mathewson for 31st place on the all-time strikeout list.tmpplchld Burnett’s counterpart, Reds 22-year-old lefty Brandon Finnegan, was 2 years old when the New York Mets drafted Burnett in 1995 and 6 on Aug. 17, 1999, when Burnett made his major league debut. Finnegan made his fourth major league start. After allowing a run in the first, he shut out the Pirates for the next five innings.tmpplchld Adam Duvall homered in the seventh. Fans threw the ball back on the field; McCutchen picked it up and threw it in the river.tmpplchld After a two-out walk to Jason Bourgeois, manager Clint Hurdle came out to get Burnett. Hurdle gave him two taps on the chest before Burnett walked into the dugout, waving at the crowd, tipping his cap to the Reds’ dugout. He came out for a curtain call, blew kisses in the direction of his family in the suites and disappeared.tmpplchld Burnett’s 62/3 innings of three-run ball kept his ERA this season at 3.18, the lowest of his career. He has 2,513 career strikeouts and a career 3.99 ERA.tmpplchld ___tmpplchld (c)2015 Pittsburgh Post-Gazettetmpplchld Visit the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette at www.post-gazette.comtmpplchld Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.tmpplchld