Rus Livingood
May 4, 2013 – Reds @ Cubs – 1:05pm – Fox Sports Ohio
Reds Record (16 – 14)
Away Record (4 – 10)
Cubs Record (11 – 18)
Home Record (5 – 8)
Starters: Cingrani (2 – 0) vs. Samardzjia (1 – 4)
The Setting: My parents’ house in Gilbert, WV. They are in the process of moving from the house they lived in for 20 years, and into my dad’s childhood home. We are staying at the “new” house, as they are almost ready to move in. There is a lot more space for the baby to play in, as lots of things are boxed up at their current house. Fox Sports Ohio is available at both locations, and I have nothing to do all day. I get no cell phone service, and this is like a vacation for me.
The Game and Analysis:
•My dad and I shot pool during the last half of the game, and they don’t have the TV mounted in that room yet. You can look around the corner and see the TV in the living room, so that is how I watched the end of the game. I don’t get to visit my parents often with my hectic schedule, and I wanted to shoot some pool with dad. The Reds’ big comeback happened during all of this, so we kept congregating at the corner in between shots.
•Shin-Soo Choo led off the game with a home run on the first pitch of the game. I love the fact that Choo can launch homers at any time and has a high slugging percentage to go with that obscene on base percentage. He also drew a walk, reaching base twice in five plate appearances to lower his OBP. Even though he has slumped a bit recently, Choo has been the Reds’ MVP so far this year in my opinion.
•Joey Votto had a pretty good game, going 2 – 4 with a double and a walk. He has been slowly raising his average and looking more comfortable in the batter’s box. He is now 12 – 37 (.324) on this road trip, and 10 for his last 25 (.400) after Washington dominated the Reds those first three games of the trip. He’s not back to where he used to be, but he looks like he is getting close.
•Rookie Tony Cingrani looked good again as he fills in for the injured Johnny Cueto, but he did find himself in some trouble. Though he only gave up three hits in six innings, two of those hits were two run home runs by Alfonso Soriano. Cingrani threw 96 pitches, and high pitch counts have been a problem for him so far. Strikeout pitchers tend to throw more pitches, naturally, and Cueto faced these same issues when he first came up. Cingrani wasn’t even racking up his customary high strikeout totals in this game, but still allowed his pitch count to rise. He left the game trailing 4 – 2, but I remain impressed with Cingrani at this stage of his career. He is slotted in Cueto’s number one slot in the rotation, meaning he often faces the opposition’s best pitcher and he has held his own.
•Here’s how that big eighth inning went down for the Reds. Carlos Marmol came in to pitch, and he has struggled with control this year. He walked Zack Cozart on four pitches and got a visit to the mound from the pitching coach after just one batter. Up next was Votto, who walked after fouling off a couple of pitches. Brandon Phillips was then hit by a pitch, loading the bases with no outs. Marmol was then taken out of the game. Jay Bruce dropped a single into left-centerfield, scoring Cozart to make it 4 – 3 and still no outs with the bases loaded. Todd Frazier hit a sacrifice fly that allowed all runners to advance all the runners and making the score 4 – 4. The Cubs intentionally walked Xavier Paul to load the bases. Jack Hanahan pinch-hit for Corky Miller and drew a walk, scoring Phillips and pushing the Reds ahead 5 – 4. Devin Mesoraco hit a sac fly scoring Bruce to make it 6 – 4 Reds, and then the ninth batter of the inning, Choo, grounded out to end the inning. Final tally: 4 runs, 1 hit, three walks, 1 HBP, and 2 sac flies.
•Aroldis Chapman bounced back after yesterday’s issues to save the game in the bottom of the ninth. He walked Soriano and threw a couple of sliders in the dirt, but no damage was done. His velocity was down a little, and it will be interesting to see how he does in his next couple of outings. Last year, if he got hit or blew a game, it seemed to wreck his confidence.
What Worked: The Reds’ bats and patience at the plate allowed them to win this game. Cingrani allowed the two homers but stayed composed and pitched a good game. The bullpen allowed one base runner in three innings pitched. Logan Ondrusek and Jonathan Broxton were very efficient in their innings. Chapman was able to come back for the save.
What Didn’t Work: It is nitpicking when the pitching staff only gave up three hits the entire game, but Cingrani left a couple of pitches up and Soriano exploded on them. After the first one, you would think he would try to keep the ball down against Soriano the second time. Like I said, that is splitting hairs.
Where They Stand: The Reds are 17 – 14 and trail the Cardinals and Pirates in the NL Central.
Overall Thoughts: Great win for the Reds and a great time for me. I had not been to Gilbert for an overnight stay in three or four years, and my only trips in over the past couple of years were for weddings, funerals, or baptisms. I see my parents fairly frequently, but trips to my old hometown are not frequent. Getting to shoot some pool with dad while watching the Reds win was fun.
Up Next: The Reds finish up their road trip as they face the Cubs tomorrow. I’ll be back in Huntington and watching as usual.
