Rus Livingood
July 9, 2013 – Reds @ Brewers – 8:10pm – Fox Sports Cincinnati
Reds Record (50 – 39)
Away Record (20 – 23)
Brewers Record (36 – 52)
Home Record (21 – 25)
Starters: Cingrani (3 – 0) vs. Peralta (5 – 9)
The Setting: For today and the next seven Tuesdays, I will be taking a Dale Carnegie course in a town that is just over an hour away from me. I will be working all day, then leaving just a little bit early so I can get there on time, and then get home around 9:15pm every Tuesday night. That means lots of DVRed games on Tuesdays, and watching as much as I can prior to going asleep.
The Game and Analysis:
•I stayed awake for the entire game, getting to start it around 9:30pm on delay. I probably could have fallen asleep though, as that is basically what the Reds did at the plate. They collected only three hits as they were shut out by Wily Peralta and the Brewers 2 – 0.
•The Reds actually got their first hit of the game on a leadoff single by Shin-Soo Choo. Thought they had a couple of walks and a hit batter to work with, they would not get another hit until the top of the seventh.
•Reds base runners did not do much once they got on. Choo singled to open the game and was immediately doubled off when Zack Cozart lined a ball right at the first baseman; Chris Heisey was hit by a pitch and did not advance a base; Ryan Hanigan walked with no outs, went to second on a sacrifice bunt, and then made it no further; Brandon Phillips walked and was promptly picked off; and Jay Bruce walked and went nowhere.
•The Brewers scored their only runs on a walk and a home run by Logan Schafer. Tony Cingrani has been prone to giving up homers this year, and has been burned on multiple occasions by walking a batter right before giving up a bomb. In this instance, Martin Maldonado walked on seven pitches after being down 0 – 2. Schafer hit the first pitch out of the park, and that would be all the Brewers needed.
•Hits were hard to come by for both teams, and that is a testament to the starting pitchers. Peralta was mowing them down, throwing a complete game shutout while giving up three hits, four walks, and striking out six. Cingrani struck out ten in 7.0 innings while giving up three hits and two walks.
•In the seventh, the Reds actually had something to cheer about on offense. With two outs, Derrick Robinson slapped a liner down the left field line and it kicked away from Ryan Braun in foul territory. The ball hit the bottom of the wall and caromed back into fair territory, running along the base of the wall. Bruan had trouble picking it up, and Robinson was motoring around the base path. Robinson was waved home, but the throw got their just before him. Even though he appeared to just beat the tag, Robinson was called out at home.
•The game lasted around two hours and thirty minutes according to the box score, but fast-forwarding through the commercials made it go much faster.
•Schafer’s home run was his first ever. He was a late addition to the lineup as Norichika Aoki was scratched at the last minute with tightness in his elbow.
•Cingrani lost his first major league decision. He has had several no decisions on the year, but the team always found a way to take him off the hook if he was the pitcher of record. He would have no such luxury today. Cingrani looks to be able to develop into a very good pitcher, but those walks and homers will bit you if you don’t have run support.
What Worked: Peralta was gold for the Brewers. Cingrani was pretty good in his own right, racking up ten strikeouts and giving up only three hits.
What Didn’t Work: The Reds offense was nearly invisible.
Where They Stand: The Reds are 50 – 40 and trail the Cardinals by 5.0 games and the Pirates ny 3.5 games in the NL Central.
Overall Thoughts: Hold the struggling opponent to two runs; score zero of your own. That is not a good formula. This club needs to get going soon, as the hole to climb out of is getting deeper. The overall record is good, but this club has two solid teams ahead of them in the division.
Up Next: Game three against the Brewers is tomorrow.
