Rus Livingood
July 11, 2013 – Reds @ Braves – 7:10pm – Fox Sports Cincinnati
Reds Record (51 – 40)
Away Record (21 – 24)
Braves Record (52 – 39)
Home Record (29 – 13)
Starters: Latos (8 – 2) vs. Hudson (5 – 7)
The Setting: Watching at home with the family.
The Game and Analysis:
•The two clubs went back and forth exchanging runs, but the Braves pulled ahead and eventually hung on for the 6 – 5 lead. It was a sloppy, hit-filled game, and all the details are below.
•The Reds started off well. Shin-Soo Choo led off the top of the first with a single and stole second base. The throw went into centerfield, so Choo advanced to third. After Zack Cozart struck out, Joey Votto walked to put runners on the corners. Mr. RBI Brandon Phillips singled home Choo for a 1 – 0 lead and sent Votto to third in the process. Jay Bruce then followed with a single to right that scored Votto (2 – 0), but Phillips was gunned down trying to go to third. A Todd Frazier strikeout ended the inning. That could have been a bigger inning, and I’m not sure who to blame on Phillips getting gunned down at third. It was a great throw by Heyward, but it appeared third base coach Chris Speier tried to hold Phillips up at second. Phillips hesitated, then ran to third anyway. Speier then did not tell Phillips to slide, and he was tagged out easily standing up.
•Not to be outdone, the Braves had a big first inning as well. After giving up singles to Andrelton Simmons and Justin Upton, Mat Latos gave up to runs on a Freddie Freeman double with one out. The Reds would have to get four outs in the inning, as a B.J. Upton strikeout ended with him being safe on a missed third strike and throwing error by catcher Devin Mesoraco. After one inning, it was 2 – 2.
•The Braves would take the lead in the second inning, as they sent another six batters to the plate. Heyward singled and went to third on an infield single by Justin Upton. Heyward pulled something while running and had to leave the game. Freddie Freeman picked up another RBI as he singled in pinch runner Reed Johnson for a 3 – 2 lead. Freeman was announced as an All-Star before the game, and he was certainly looking the part in this game.
•Choo continued to get back to his old form as he led off with a double in the third. Cozart bunted him to third, and then Choo scored on a sacrifice fly by Votto. That is what the Reds haven’t been able to do over the past month. The Braves did nothing in their half of the inning, so it was tied 3 – 3 after the third.
•The Braves erased two singles by the Reds with an inning-ending double play in the top of the fourth. In the bottom of the inning, they sent seven more batters to the plate and scored three more runs. Johnson tripled in Simmons (4 – 3); Justin Upton doubled in Reed Johnson (5 – 3); and Freeman singled in Upton (6 – 3) on successive at bats. Latos would not pitch past the fourth inning as he was roughed up in this game.
•The Reds got one run back in the fifth. With one out, Choo walked and Cozart singled. Votto hit a ball to third that was stopped by a diving Chris Johnson. He robbed Votto of an RBI single, but his throw from his knees was wild, allowing Choo to score anyway. Phillips then hit into a double play to end the inning. It was 6 – 4 Braves.
•The final run of the game came in the eighth inning. Cozart hit an infield single and went to second on a throwing error by Simmons. It was the third error by the Braves, and the fourth in the game for both clubs. Phillips knocked him in with an RBI double to make the score 6 – 5. The Reds would not be able to drive in Phillips or Bruce, who was intentionally walked, nor were they able to make much noise in the ninth. The game would end 6 – 5.
•The Reds bullpen threw four scoreless innings, two each by Logan Ondrusek and Alfredo Simon. The bullpen is on some kind of scoreless innings streak right now, and I want to say it is in the upper twenties. That is astounding.
•Choo extended his hitting streak to nine games and is heating up big time. After an 0 -4 day to start the month dropped his average to .264, Choo has used this nine game streak to raise it back to .280. Juley is looking much better than the prolonged slump of June and part of May.
What Worked: The reds notched ten hits and kept the pressure on the Braves. The bullpen was masterful as we have come to expect of them lately.
What Didn’t Work: Latos was knocked around and lasted only four innings. The Reds took themselves out of a few innings with double plays, and they were unable to take full advantage of their opportunities and the three errors by the Braves. The deficit was just too much to overcome.
Where They Stand: The Reds are 51 – 41 and trail the Cardinals by 5.0 games and the Pirates by 4.0 games in the NL Central.
Overall Thoughts: I was hoping for a strong close to the first half by the Reds, but they have not been playing that well. They had the offense going at times in this game, but could not pull out the win. They need to start making up some ground, and today would have been a good day as the Pirates were off and the Cardinals lost. The Reds need to finish strong in these last three games of the series and first half.
Up Next: Game two is tomorrow night. I will be watching the game in Gilbert, WV as I visit my parents and friends.
