Rus Livingood
June 10, 2013 – Reds @ Cubs – 8:05pm – Fox Sports Cincinnati
Reds Record (37 – 26)
Away Record (15 – 15)
Cubs Record (25 – 35)
Home Record (14– 18)
Starters: Bailey (3 – 4) vs. Feldman (5 – 4)
The Setting: Casa de Livingood. These late games are going to kill me. I might never catch up on sleep.
The Game and Analysis:
•The early portions of this game looked like it could be delayed or postponed at any minute due to a thick fog. It cleared up, and the Reds rode Brandon Phillips’ great day at the plate for 6 – 2 win to kick off this four game series.
•Phillips knocked in all six of the Reds’ runs on the day, highlighted by a grand slam in the third inning. He picked up the other RBIs with a single in the first and a groundout in the eighth. Phillips had to miss four games after being hit on the arm and having trouble gripping with his left hand, and that saw him fall behind on the National League RBI leader board. He made up for it here, and is up to 52 RBIs on the year. He has been a major part of the Reds’ production this year, and his approach to getting the runs in no matter what has been tremendous. The Reds announcers have been showing graphics recently about the similarities of Phillips and Joe Morgan for career numbers as a Red. Phillips tied Morgan with his 152nd home run in this game, and passed him in RBIs (615 to 612). Phillips has definitely put his stamp on the Reds since he came here.
•Homer Bailey pitched brilliantly, going 8.0 innings and only giving up one run on four hits. The one run was unearned, coming on a rare error by Phillips at second base. Phillips also saved a run with a leaping catch at second, though. Bailey’s performance was sorely needed, as the bullpen has been beaten up lately and they needed some rest. Bailey threw a lot of strikes and seemed to have great command. When he pounds the strike zone and puts on a performance like this, he looks like a future ace. If he can ever put it all together, he very well could be. He has come a long way over the last few years and shows signs of brilliance and dominance.
•The fog came into play early on, as there were lots of lost balls even on outs. At times, it looked like batters were having a hard time picking up the ball coming out of the pitcher’s hand. By the middle of the game, the fog had lifted and it was a clear, beautiful night in Chicago.
•Shin-Soo Choo was hit by a pitch to lead off the game, and it was his 18th of the year. We are a little over a third of the season being complete, and that is a new career high for Choo.
•The Reds scored the first run of the game in the first. Choo was hit by the pitch and then was forced out at second when the entire Cubs infield lost a popup, but threw to second in time to get CHoo. Cozart was safe on the play and went to second on a ground out by Joey Votto, then scored on Phillips’ single. In the third, Bailey led off with a single, and a Zack Cozart single with one out put runners on first and second. Votto singled to load the bases, and Phillips hit the slam to put the Reds up 5 – 0. The Cubs got their run after a Luis Valbuena double, and Phillips’ throwing error on an infield single by Nate Schieroltz. Cozart scored again in the eighth after singling and moving to second on a walk to Joey Votto and moving to third on a wild pitch. Phillips’ groundout knocked him in. The final run of the night came when reliever Alfredo Simon gave up an infield single to Alfonso Soriano, who later scored on a Starlin Castro double.
What Worked: Brandon Phillips was all over this game. He was clutch at the plate and played his usual great defense in the field. I’ll overlook his throwing error, as it was while trying to make a great play and was not a factor in the game. Bailey had it working tonight, too. His outing was huge for the Reds and their bullpen.
What Didn’t Work: Both teams had some early trouble locating balls due to the fog, but that was to be expected.
Where They Stand: The Reds are 38 – 26 and trail the Cardinals by 3.5 games in the NL Central. They are now 0.5 game ahead of the Pirates.
Overall Thoughts: That was a good way to kick off the series, and I hope the pitching gets back on track against the Cubs. The Reds need a good couple of games and hopefully a Cardinal loss or two to help close the gap again. Phillips owned this game tonight; just so fun to watch.
Up Next: The Reds take on the Cubs again tomorrow night.
