Rus Livingood
May 17, 2013 – Reds @ Phillies – 7:05pm – Fox Sports Cincinnati
Reds Record (25 – 16)
Away Record (9 – 10)
Phillies Record (19 – 22)
Home Record (9 – 10)
Starters: Cingrani (2 – 0) vs. Lee (4 – 2)
The Setting: Casa de Livingood on the trusty recliner seat.
The Game and Analysis:
•Well that was rough to watch. It was an exciting game, and even though the Reds’ offense was stymied early by Cliff Lee, I was enjoying the game. And then the bottom of the eighth happened. More on that in a bit, as I recap how the Reds came from behind to tie the game, then ultimately lost 5 – 3.
•Lee got out of the first two innings without giving up a run even though he gave up three singles and two walks in the frames. He threw 45 pitches in those first two innings. Over the next three innings, Lee gave up one single on 39 pitches. He had settled in and was cruising right along.
•For the Reds, Tony Cingrani looked good early, then gave up a two run homer to Jimmy Rollins in the third inning to set the score at 2 – 0 Phillies. In the fifth inning, Singrani gave up a double to Lee that just missed being a home run. Lee thought it was gone, but it hit right at the top of the wall to stay in the park. Later in the inning, Michael Young tripled to deep centerfield just out of Shin-Soo Choo’s reach to score Lee to make it 3 – 0 Phils. Cingrani’s line was 5.0 innings, 5 hits, 2 walks, 3 runs, and 4 strikeouts on 100 pitches. Cingrani shows a lot of promise, but has struggled with keeping his pitch count down and has been prone to giving up home runs. Through six games this year, he has given up seven homers in 33.0 innings pitched.
•Down 3 – 0 entering the sixth, the Reds finally got runs on the board against Lee and the Phillies. Brandon Phillips led off the inning with a double, and then Jay Bruce followed with a home run to make the score 3 – 2 Phillies. Lee settled back in and retired his next six batters to finish up his day. His final line was 7.0 innings, 6 hits, 2 walks, 2 runs and 7 strikeouts.
•The score remained 3 – 2 until the top of the eighth inning. Antonio Bastardo was brought in as a lefty to face Joey Votto and Bruce, who were due up first and third in the inning. Votto absolutely crushed a fastball to centerfield (estimated at 421 feet) to tie the score at 3 – 3. After retiring Phillips, Bruce singled off Bastardo. I guess the lefty – lefty matchup didn’t work out like the Phils envisioned. That was all the Reds would get, so the score remained tied going into the bottom of the eighth.
•As mentioned, that was the point that I stopped enjoying the game. Here is why. Sean Marshall struck out Chase Utley to start the inning, and then Young walked on 10 pitches after being behind 1 – 2 in the count. Young fouled off four pitches during the at bat. Ryan Howard tried to check his swing on the next pitch, and the ball hit the bat and rolled about 35 feet. Marshall rushed to pick it up, but double-clutched on the throw as he could get a grip on the ball. Howard had an infield single without a throw. Runners were now on first and second with one out. Jonathan Broxton came in to relieve Marshall, and he hit Delmon Young on the first pitch to load the bases. Speedster Ben Revere was brought in to run for Young. Domonic Brown (fast in his own right) then hit a ball up the middle that was fielded by Zack Cozart and flipped to Phillips. Phillips read way back to bare-hand the flip so he could catch and throw to first quickly to get the double play. Instead, he didn’t catch the ball, allowing a run to score and everyone to be safe. No balls made it out of the infield, and the Phillies scored a run to make it 4 – 3 and the bases were still loaded with one out. Carlos Ruiz followed with a sacrifice fly to center to make the game 5 – 3, and that is what the final score ended up being.
•Votto went 2 – 4 and his home run was monstrous. It wasn’t as far as he has hit them in the past or anything, but it was hit to the deepest part of the field and there was no doubt about it when it left the bat. It was great to see that powerful swing back in action.
•Bruce picked up two hits and extended his hitting streak to eight games. He has gotten multiple hits in three straight games and four of his last five. He is hitting .364 during the streak, with three home runs and 10 RBI. He has hit in 13 of his last 15 games, and is looking very confident at the plate. He isn’t quite at his nuclear-level streak yet, but hopefully he can keep this up.
What Worked: Bruce and Votto stayed hot with a couple of home runs to tie the game. Cingrani did not have a bad start, and the game was well in reach late in the game.
What Didn’t Work: The bullpen went to pieces in the eighth, though they were not getting blasted by any stretch of the imagination. The walk and hit batter hurt. Things happen like the check-swing single, but Marshall should have gotten Howard out at first if he fielded it cleanly. The official scorer ruled it a single, but that is an error. Phillips’ error also hurt bad, as I don’t think he would have turned the double play in that situation no matter what. Maybe if Cozart made a better flip/throw to second they would have had a shot, but getting the first out is always the priority when trying to turn the double play.
Where They Stand: The Reds are 25 – 17 and are 2.5 games behind the Cardinals in the NL Central. They are tied with the Pirates.
Overall Thoughts: This was a heartbreaking loss for me. The Reds came in to the game on a six game winning streak and had swept three of their last four series to put them near the top for the best record in baseball. They were able to tie it up in the eighth inning, and then just gave the game away basically. That half inning was a pain to watch.
Up Next: The Reds will try to redeem themselves in game two of this series tomorrow afternoon.
