The Cincinnati Reds will go for the sweep of the 2-game series in Cleveland tonight against the Guardians. Cincinnati enters the day with four games remaining and they are 1.5 games back for the final wild card spot. Every game seems to be a must-win game at this point. Tonight’s first pitch is set for 6:10pm ET.

Starting Lineups

Starting Pitchers

Andrew Abbott

The leash has been short with Abbott over the last two starts as he’s allowed two runs in each game, but was removed in the 4th and 5th innings of each outing. Abbott faced Cleveland on August 16th and allowed two runs in 5.0 innings in a 7-2 Reds victory.

Left-handed hitters continue to sit when Abbott is on the mound – he’s had just 80 of them step to the plate against him this season – but when there is an occasional lefty in the box they don’t do much of anything. Right-handed hitters find more success. They don’t hit for too much average, but righties do walk at a solid rate and they show good power against him.

Splits

Pitch Usage

Shane Bieber

This will be just the second start since coming off of the injured list for Bieber. He missed most of July, all of August, and most of September before returning last week against Baltimore where he allowed four earned runs in 5.0 innings.

Left-handed hitters do a lot more damage against Bieber than righties do. Lefties hit for a higher average, walk twice as much, and hit for a lot more power. Right-handed hitters rarely walk and they hit for next to no power. Not shown below in the splits are the home/road numbers. Bieber has a 3.66 ERA at home and has just allowed four homers in 10 starts.

Splits

Pitch Usage

When and Where

• Game time: 6:10pm ET
• Where: Progressive Field
• Watch: Bally Sports Ohio, MLB.tv (out of market)
• Listen: 700 WLW AM (Cincinnati area)
• Forecast: 69°, cloudy, 15% chance of rain

News and Notes

Kevin Newman released

Two days ago the Reds designated Kevin Newman for assignment. He cleared waivers and this afternoon the club gave him his outright release.

Wild Card Standings

Division Standings

The post Cincinnati Reds vs Cleveland Guardians – September 27, 2023 appeared first on Redleg Nation.

Last night, I saw what I’ve been waiting to see since June: Joey Votto and Elly De La Cruz running at the same time. Votto batted ahead of him, so he had at least a 90-foor head start.

I was honestly afraid De La Cruz would lap him. I have no idea what the MLB ruling is if and when that happens, but I had visions of De La Cruz jogging with great furor behind Votto, as though he was standing behind him on airport moving walkway and the gate agent just made the final boarding call and Votto was just standing there with his rolly bag.

Slide, Kid

It didn’t come to that, fortunately; Votto beat him to the plate, and immediately turned his attention to the location of the ball. As De La Cruz rounded third, Votto got low, turned his palms to the ground, and waited. Slide, kid.

He did not, of course, have long to wait. De La Cruz’s face skidded to a stop just before Votto’s shoes, and the first baseman bent to meet him, and I have no idea what was said or yelled, but it was probably advisatory.

Whether it was about how to conduct a slide at the plate or life in general is beside the point. The point is that Joey Votto is 40 years old and De La Cruz just got legal to enter the Hard Rock Casino a few months ago.

Growth

One Bally Sports commentator mentioned that the Reds staff wasn’t entirely sure if De La Cruz was even done physically growing yet, as though he’s going to need a new pair of school shoes before Christmas break. Votto, of course, is done with that phase of life– was done with it long ago– but while his body might occupy the far-range opposite of De La Cruz’s physical circumstances, he is mentally just as thrilled to be playing ball as he was as a Canadian child.

When the time comes, whether in a few weeks or next year at this time, Joey Votto will be done and he must at last consider what comes next. He is both a natural commentator and coach, and while I’d love to hear what Joey Votto thinks about life in general on a daily basis all summer long, the lure of remaining physically close to the game, rather than in an air-conditioned booth, likely appears to him more.

Back to Work

The roots of this are in the trajectory of his behavior throughout his career. When Jim Day asked him why he suppressed his natural humor for so many years, only recently willing to state his anticipation for Fresca after a long night in the dugout, Votto answered that when he was coming up as a rookie, the message from his clubhouse elders was to keep his head down, his shirt tucked, and his mouth closed. So he did, and likely received a more complete baseball education in the process.

Given Votto’s work ethic, that rookie is still in there somewhere, and we saw a flash of him as Votto tipped his batting helmet to a standing ovation as he took the field in what could be his last home game. He waved to all corners of the stadium, pounded his chest, and then pointed to the batter’s box. That was, after all, his office,  and he was on the clock. So: Back to work.

He was receiving just reward for an entire career in the same city, and he could have squeezed every last decibel of applause from the crowd, but his mind was on how he was going to play this AB with no men on and the Reds with a slight lead.

And that is why he was receiving the ovation in the first place.

The Locomotive

Joey Votto could review the numbers of this season, feel the ache in his shoulder, and decide to call it quits.  He might even do so partially because the Reds roster glut means that he is willing to forfeit his own playing time in favor of those scrambling for his place in the lineup.

Or, he takes some Advil, says screw it, and shows up in Arizona on Valentine’s Day.

He must weigh leaving the field with some bangers still in the tank– sparing us the sight of his full decline– with absorbing every single possible second in the sport he so dearly loves.

What we do know is that youth is just behind him, chasing him down, a locomotive he can’t stop. But instead of just wildly attempting to outrun it all, his response is to face it, pass on what he can, and maybe get in an extra run while he’s at it.

The post Baseball Is Life: Back to Work appeared first on Redleg Nation.

The Cincinnati Reds needed a bunch of runs on Tuesday night, and they got them thanks to five home runs – including two by Elly De La Cruz – in another come from behind win. Cincinnati’s offense put up 11 runs and the bullpen allowed one hit in six innings of relief to keep their playoff hopes alive in an 11-7 win over the Cleveland Guardians.

After striking out 14 batters in a dominant performance during his previous start, things went south for Hunter Greene on Tuesday night. In the bottom of the 2nd inning he gave up a 2-out, 3-run homer to Bo Naylor that put Cleveland up 3-0.

The Reds offense had Greene’s back. In the top of the 3rd inning they’d get a leadoff homer from Luke Maile. TJ Friedl walked and then scored on a triple by Spencer Steer to make it 3-2. Christian Encarnacion-Strand then capped off the inning with a 2-run homer to put Cincinnati ahead 4-3.

Cleveland stormed back in the bottom of the inning. They would get a 2-run homer from Kole Calhoun to take the lead back. Andres Gimenez followed up with a homer of his own to extend the Guardians lead to 6-4.

The Rally Reds weren’t going to go quietly into the night. Elly De La Cruz led off the 4th with a home run – his first in over a month. The Guardians had another rally in them and they would get a walk and a single to lead off the 4th against Greene and that ended his night as Cincinnati turned to Sam Moll. He would get a ground out to begin the outing, but both runners moved up a base. That led to an intentional walk of Jose Ramirez to try and set up a force out at any bag. It didn’t work and Josh Naylor picked up an RBI single that made it 7-5 before Moll would record the final two outs of the inning.

It was time for the Reds to get their rally on once again and they got a little bit of help this time as Christian Encarnacion-Strand got on via a throwing error by the pitcher to lead off the inning. Joey Votto walked to put two men on. After a pitching change, Elly De La Cruz singled and brought Encarnacion-Strand in to score, with De La Cruz taking second base on the throw to third base. Luke Maile then came through with a go-ahead single that drove in two and made it 8-7.

In the top of the 6th inning TJ Friedl picked up a home run for the 4th game in a row, a solo shot that made it 9-7. It was his 18th of the season, leaving him just two shy of turning in a 20-20 season.

Fernando Cruz took over for the Reds on the mound in the bottom of the 6th inning and he fired two perfect inning of relief. Lucas Sims came out and fired a perfect 8th inning as Cincinnati held onto their 2-run lead. In the top of the 9th inning Elly De La Cruz added to the Reds lead with a 467-foot, 2-run home run that had an exit velocity of 119.2 MPH.

Holding a 11-7 lead, Alexis Diaz entered the game. He walked Myles Straw to lead off the inning, but then retired the Guardians in order to guarantee a non-losing season as they picked up their 81st win of the season.

Key Moment of the Game

Luke Maile’s 2-run single in the top of the 5th inning that put the Reds up 8-7.

Notes worth noting

The 119.2 MPH exit velocity on the second home run by Elly De La Cruz is the top mark by a Red since they began tracking that back in 2015. It’s the 9th hardest hit baseball in the big leagues in that time. This was the first multi-homer game of his big league career.

TJ Friedl is the first Reds center fielder to homer in four straight games since Ken Griffey Jr.

The comeback win was the 48th of the year for Cincinnati. That’s tied for the most in baseball this year.

Up Next for the Cincinnati Reds

Cincinnati Reds vs Cleveland Guardians

Wednesday September 27th, 6:10pm ET

Andrew Abbott (8-5, 3.70 ERA) vs Shane Bieber (5-6, 3.91 ERA)

The post Elly De La Cruz homers twice, Reds win 11-7 in Cleveland appeared first on Redleg Nation.

There are five games left in the regular season for the Cincinnati Reds. Tonight they’ll start up a 2-game set in Cleveland against the Guardians. If the Reds want to make the playoffs they likely need to win out. Tonight’s first pitch is set for 6:10pm ET.

Starting Lineups

Starting Pitchers

Hunter Greene

Coming off of one of the best starts of his career – he struck out 14 batters with one walk and allowed a run in 7.0 innings against Minnesota – Greene will be looking to repeat that performance against Cleveland. Tonight’s start will be his first against Cleveland in his career.

His splits are pretty big. Right-handed hitters hit quite well against Greene, putting up a high average and plenty of power. Left-handed hitters don’t do much hitting against him with a sub .200 average and only hit for mediocre amounts of power  against him.

Splits

Pitch Usage

Lucas Giolito

After being claimed on waivers by Cleveland, Giolito got shelled in his debut as he gave up nine runs in 3.0 innings in a 20-6 loss to Minnesota. In the three starts since then he’s allowed five earned runs in 19.1 innings with four walks and 27 strikeouts (2.33 ERA). Giolito faced the Reds a month ago when the Angels came to town and he allowed one earned – but three more unearned – in 6.0 innings.

The splits for Giolito pretty much don’t exist. The OPS for righties is .778 and for lefties it’s .771. They do get there a little differently, though. Lefties walk more, but hit for a lower average, and they strike out a bit more often. Righties hit for a higher average and make a little more contact.

Splits

Pitch Usage

When and Where

• Game time: 6:10pm ET
• Where: Progressive Field
• Watch: Bally Sports Ohio, MLB.tv (out of market)
• Listen: 700 WLW AM (Cincinnati area)
• Forecast: 69°, cloudy, 15% chance of rain

News and Notes

Matt McLain out for the year

The Reds were hoping to get Matt McLain back after a short rehab stint over the weekend. That’s not happening. McLain re-aggravated his injury and will miss the rest of the season. We wrote more about it, with quotes from McLain, earlier today and you can check that out here if you’re looking for some more information.

Wild Card Standings

Division Standings

The post Cincinnati Reds vs Cleveland Guardians – September 26, 2023 appeared first on Redleg Nation.

The Cincinnati Reds were hoping to get infielder Matt McLain back from injury rehab this afternoon. The club sent McLain to Triple-A Louisville for a 2-game stint over the weekend and if things went well the plan was to activate him today prior to the series in Cleveland against the Guardians. Things did not go well. Prior to today’s game it was announced that he would miss the year with a grade 2 strain of his oblique – confirmed by an MRI (first reported by Mark Sheldon of Reds.com).

Perhaps the first sign that things weren’t looking great was when McLain did not complete the game in Louisville on Sunday – though it simply could have been a situation where the team pulled him because they didn’t want to risk injury and felt he “got his at-bats”. The second sign that things weren’t looking great came earlier today when the lineup for Cincinnati was released and McLain wasn’t in it. While it’s possible he could simply have been ready to come off of the bench, he’s arguably been the best hitter on the team this year and that wouldn’t make a ton of sense.

“It was just kind of like ‘this really hurts’, then the next day it really hurt and I was pulled from the game,” McLain said about his Saturday and Sunday with Louisville prior to this evening’s game in Cleveland.

“It definitely sucks. I knew it would be tough to come back. And I knew it would be really quick to come back with the level it was in the first place, but I really wanted to for our team. It just didn’t happen, unfortunately.”

With the end of the rookie season for Matt McLain, you can chalk it up to a very successful one – even if it didn’t end how he would have liked it to. The infielder played in 89 games after his call up in mid-May and hit .290/.357/.507 with 23 doubles, 4 triples, 16 home runs, 14 stolen bases, 65 runs, and 50 RBI. For those are like this kind of stuff, he had 3.6 WAR (Baseball Reference) / 3.2 WAR (Fangraphs). You can see his stats here.

The post Reds infielder Matt McLain out for the year appeared first on Redleg Nation.

It’s an off day for the Cincinnati Reds when it comes to playing games on the field. The front office, though, doesn’t have the day off and they made a move this afternoon. Infielder Kevin Newman was activated from the injured list and then he was designated for assignment.

Five weeks ago the team placed Kevin Newman on the injured list with an oblique strain. He headed out to join the Triple-A Louisville Bats on a rehab assignment on September 5th. Over the next two weeks he played in 11 games for the Bats, going 8-38 (.211) with five walks.

Position players can have up to 20 days on a rehab assignment. Last week the Reds quietly brought Newman back to Cincinnati where he continued his rehab with the team rather than having him continue to play in Triple-A. It would appear that there was not any “setback”, which the team could have then used as a way to keep him on the injured list. Today marks the 21st day since his rehab assignment began, meaning the club had to make a choice.

While the season is ending this week, Newman was not set to be free agent after 2023. Well, he is now that the team designated him for assignment.

Following last season the Reds traded reliever Dauri Moreta for Newman. He would ultimately play in 74 games for Cincinnati and hit .253/.311/.364 with 16 doubles, three home runs, and eight stolen bases. For those curious, Moreta has a 4.02 ERA in 53.2 innings out of the Pirates bullpen this season.

The post Cincinnati Reds designate Kevin Newman for assignment appeared first on Redleg Nation.

The Cincinnati Reds didn’t have a hit through the first five innings of the game and trailed 2-0. But they got things going in the 6th and completed a come-from-behind win in Rally Reds fashion to wrap up their home schedule for the regular season with a 4-2 victory in what may have been the final home game for Joey Votto after 17 seasons with the club.

The bottom of the 1st inning started out well for the Reds as both Jonathan India and TJ Friedl walked, but the inning went nowhere as a double play and pop up followed. Brandon Williamson got himself into some trouble in the top of the 2nd after allowing a 1-out double and followed it up with a walk and a wild pitch to put two men in scoring position, but he got out of it with a fly out to center to keep the game scoreless.

In the bottom of the second inning Joey Votto came to the plate with one out and the home crowd gave him a standing ovation and were heard chanting “Joey, Joey!” as he stepped out of the box to acknowledge the crowd who was showing their appreciation for his 17-year career in what could be his final game at Great American Ball Park.

Joey Votto loves Cincinnati and Cincinnati loves Joey Votto.

Here was the scene as Votto came to the plate for the first time today at Great American Ball Park. @JoeyVotto | @Reds pic.twitter.com/cEj9a6X0Y5

— Bally Sports Cincinnati (@BallySportsCIN) September 24, 2023

Votto would eventually strike out looking and the Reds would go in order in the inning.

Neither team would do much of anything in the next couple of innings. But in the top of the 5th inning Jack Suwinski put the Pirates in front with his 26th homer of the season with a leadoff solo shot. Pittsburgh added on after a 1-out double was followed by an RBI single from Jason Delay to extend their lead to 2-0. That would mark the end of the day for Brandon Williamson as David Bell called on Buck Farmer to enter the game and while he issued a 2-out walk, he’d get out of the inning with no further damage.

Cincinnati went down in order in the 5th, leaving them hitless on the day against a pitcher who had given up four or more runs in every start he’s made this season (eight of them) but one – and in that one he allowed three runs in 4.0 innings. The club would finally break through when Jonathan India led off the 6th with a single into left field. TJ Friedl then followed up with a game-tying, 2-run homer.

That group got together again in the bottom of the 7th to put the Reds in front. India picked up a 2-out double and then came around to score on Friedl’s single into left that put the home team up 3-2. Alexis Diaz entered the game for the 8th inning. He had to work around two walks, but picked up a strikeout to strand both runners and keep Cincinnati on top.

Christian Encarnacion-Strand crushed a 1-out home run to put the Reds up 4-2 in the bottom of the 8th. Joey Votto then stepped up to the plate and with the crowd chanting “Joey, Joey!” once again, he lined a single into center. Cincinnati then called for a pinch runner and Votto went down the line in the dugout getting high fives from everyone before taking a curtain call and acknowledging the crowd who was still chanting his name.

Ian Gibaut came out of the bullpen to try and pick up the save in the 9th inning. He made quick work of things, needing just 10 pitches to retire the Pirates in order and help the Reds avoid being swept as Cincinnati picked up the 4-2 win.

Key Moment of the Game

TJ Friedl’s go-ahead hit in the bottom of the 7th inning.

Notes worth noting

Joey Votto was the post-game interview on Bally Sports Ohio. Here’s how that went:

To: Reds Country

From: @JoeyVotto pic.twitter.com/E7CjgcVs9l

— Cincinnati Reds (@Reds) September 24, 2023

TJ Friedl has homered in three straight games. The Reds broadcast on Bally Sports Ohio noted that Friedl joined Roberto Alomar as the only player in MLB over the last 50 years to have 17 home runs and 17 bunt hits in the same season.

The Marlins won in Milwaukee. Arizona is leading the Yankees in the 8th inning. The Cubs are up by a run in the 8th. There are five games remaining for Cincinnati and they’ll probably need to win all of them to have a real chance at making the playoffs.

Up Next for the Cincinnati Reds

Cincinnati Reds vs Cleveland Guardians

Tuesday September 25th, 6:10pm ET

Hunter Greene (4-6, 4.24 ERA) vs Lucas Giolito (8-14, 4.60 ERA)

The post Reds win the home finale 4-2, keep playoff hopes alive appeared first on Redleg Nation.

After last night’s soul crushing loss, the Cincinnati Reds will look to move forward and try to salvage a win and avoid being swept by the Pittsburgh Pirates in the final home series of the regular season. This afternoon’s 1st pitch is set for 1:40pm ET.

Starting Lineups

Starting Pitchers

Brandon Williamson

On August 13th the Pirates saw Williamson in Pittsburgh. It was the 16th start of the year for Williamson and he put together a strong outing, allowing a run in 5.2 innings and allowed just two hits, two walks, and he had six strikeouts. He’s only thrown 4.0 innings in each of his last two starts.

Lefties hit for a higher average and have walked ever so slightly more often than righties have against Williamson. What they don’t do is hit for any sort of power – slugging just .288. Right-handed hitters make a difference against Williamson with the amount of power they hit for.

Splits

Pitch Usage

Quinn Priester

One of the Pirates top prospects entering the year, things haven’t gone well for Priester in his rookie year. He’s made eight starts this season – all since mid-July – and he’s allowed four runs or more in all of them but one, and in that one he only three 4.0 innings and gave up three runs. Control has been an issue for him as he’s walked 21 batters and given up 10 home runs in just 38.2 innings.

Left-handed hitters have absolutely crushed the ball against Priester. They walk more than they strike out, make tons of contact, hit for an average high enough to win a batting title, and they’ve got an OPS of 1.142 against him. Righties don’t hit for all that much average and they are only walking at a solid clip, but they also hit for some good power against him – just not as much as lefties.

Splits

Pitch Usage

When and Where

• Game time: 1:40pm ET
• Where: Great American Ball Park
• Watch: Bally Sports Ohio, MLB.tv (out of market)
• Listen: 700 WLW AM (Cincinnati area)
• Forecast: 78°, sunny, 0% chance of rain

News and Notes

Today could be it….

The last home game of the season could be Joey Votto’s final game at Great American Ball Park. It’s rather disappointing that we don’t know one way or the other if this really is the end.

Louisville avoids a losing season

Last night the Louisville Bats game was suspended by a power outage in the 7th inning. This morning they finished that game out with a 4-2 win. That moved them to 74-73. They’ll play their regularly scheduled game today as well. It’s the final game of the year. If they win, they will finish with a winning season for the first time since 2011. Yes, you read that correctly. But win or lose, they won’t have a losing record at the end of the year for the first time in more than a decade.

Wild Card Standings

Division Standings

The post Pittsburgh Pirates vs Cincinnati Reds – September 24, 2023 appeared first on Redleg Nation.

A 9-0 Cincinnati Reds lead after three innings was overcome by the Pittsburgh Pirates, who won 13-12, before 29,680 at Great American Ball Park.

It was the unquestioned dagger to the heart of Cincinnati Reds fans who continue to hope that their team could somehow earn a 2023 playoff berth. But the pitching staff’s inability to hold a nine-run lead over the final six innings was the story on an evening that the Reds offense scored 12 runs on 16 hits.

Unfortunately, none of the teams the Reds need to lose to gain ground in the wild-card race did so. That’s why there’s no replacement for winning when you’re in a situation like the Reds are in. I’m absolutely not giving up until the fat lady sings, as they say, but this now-four-game losing streak will ultimately be what people look back on as the ultimate reason the Reds could not make a legitimate push for the 2023 playoffs.

After tonight’s game, the National League wild-card race standings are:

This grid shows Miami and Cincinnati in the fourth- and fifth-place positions in a race in which only three teams will make it.  With now six games remaining, Cincinnati must gain at least three games on Arizona to tie them, and-or 2.5 games on the Cubs to at least tie them. As much as we all would like to think the Reds can win the remainder of the schedule, the more realistic expectation is that they can go 5-1. If that happens, Arizona would have to lose at least five of their remaining eight, and the Cubs would need to lose at least four of their remaining seven. That doesn’t even account for Miami, which of course has every bit as much of a chance as Cincinnati as long as they play well in their final seven games.

Tyler Stephenson’s disappointment after the game was hard to disguise:

“At the end of the day we have to control the things that we can control.”

Tyler Stephenson describes this one as tough, but he knows they aren’t out of the race yet. pic.twitter.com/lDMHSKybZV

— Bally Sports Cincinnati (@BallySportsCIN) September 24, 2023

The Offense

The team hitting line for the game: 16-for-41, 5 walks, 8 strikeouts. Spencer Steer and Christian Encarnacion-Strand both had three hits, and CES added four runs batted in to lead the team in that category. Stephenson and T.J. Friedl both also reached base three times on two hits and a walk.

Encarnacion-Strand and Stephenson got the Reds off to a quick first-inning lead, a welcome change from the trend of recent days and weeks. With two out and Nick Senzel on base after a single, Encarnacion-Strand blasted a hanging breaking pitch out of the zone from Bailey Falter into the right-field stands 385 feet away.

CES becomes the 11th Red with double-digit dingers, a new franchise record?? pic.twitter.com/HauJ11JAnG

— Cincinnati Reds (@Reds) September 23, 2023

Stephenson followed immediately with a 395-foot shot to put his club ahead by three early.

In the second inning, leadoff hitter Friedl laced a liner down the rightfield line which evaded right fielder Joshua Palacios and became an inside-the-park solo homer.

Everywhere he went, he was running. @TjFriedl1 pic.twitter.com/6TAXX8cZvr

— Cincinnati Reds (@Reds) September 23, 2023

An out later, Elly De La Cruz hit an opposite-field single to right then stole second and third. After a Jonathan India walk, Senzel hit a grounder that resulted in a force-out at second and De La Cruz scoring from third to make it 5-0. An infield hit by Steer moved Senzel to second, and he then scored on a looping single to right by Encarnacion-Strand to make it 6-0. Stephenson then lined a gapper to right-center, scoring both Steer and Encarnacion-Strand for an 8-0 lead after just two innings. One can only assume that Falter was going to “take one for the team,” because he surrendered six hits of more than 100 mph in just two innings against a team that has been struggling offensively.

That inning was fun. pic.twitter.com/UJrB8KjfKk

— Bally Sports Cincinnati (@BallySportsCIN) September 23, 2023

Facing righthander Kyle Nicolas in the third, Steer doubled with two outs to score Stuart Fairchild to make it 9-0.

But after the fourth inning, the Reds didn’t have another base reach base safely until Friedl walked with two out in the seventh — by which point the visiting team had made up their nine-run deficit. Friedl stole second to get into scoring position, but Fairchild struck out to keep the score tied.

Trailing 13-9 entering the bottom of the eighth, the Reds rallied against Pittsburgh righty Colin Selby. De La Cruz reached on a leadoff walk, followed by a flare to right by India which sent De La Cruz to third. Pinch-hitter Nick Martini bounced into a force-out which scored De La Cruz, making the score 13-10. Steer reached on an infield hit, bringing Encarnacion-Strand to the plate as the tying run. He lined a single to center, scoring Martini and making it 13-11. Stephenson then smoked one up the middle, but Pirates second baseman Ji Hwan Bae made a diving stop, righted himself and completed an impressive 4-3 double play to end the inning and rally.

The home team came out fighting in the bottom of the ninth against Pirates righty Carmen Mlodzinski. Joey Votto led off with a pinch-hit single, with Friedl following with a double to put the tying runs in scoring position with none out. Pinch-hitter Jake Fraley grounded out to score Votto and send Friedl to third, making it 13-12. De La Cruz then battled in his at-bat, hanging in for more than 10 pitches, but unfortunately struck out swinging on what would have been ball four. India then popped out to center to end the game with the tying run on third.

The Pitching

The sad but true team pitching line: 9 innings, 16 hits, 4 walks and 11 strikeouts.

Rookie righthander Connor Phillips pitched his second consecutive attention-grabbing game. Over the first four innings, he allowed only two very soft Pittsburgh singles, which — combined with two walks in the fourth inning — gave the Pirates their first run of the game. Eight of his nine strikeouts came during the first four frames, during which he dominated for the most part. He looks like a pitcher whom Manager David Bell can count on for what meaningful games remain in this season, and certainly as a top candidate for a spot in the 2024 rotation.

Phillips surrendered back-to-back sixth-inning singles, the second hit on his 99th and final pitch. With nobody out, Bell replaced him with lefthander Alex Young, who surrendered hits that allowed the two inherited runners to score. Pittsburgh treated him like a batting practice pitcher, plating five runs while he was on the mound.

It didn’t stop with Young, however. Fernando Cruz entered in the top of the seventh, and did his best impression of Friday-night Daniel Duarte. The first three batters Cruz faced reached on two hits and a walk. Bell came and got Cruz and replaced him with Lucas Sims with the bases loaded and none out. Immediately Alfonso Rivas laced a double to right field, clearing the bases and tying the game at 9-9. Sims retired the side without further damage, but without question, the damage had been done.

The carnage continued in the eighth, as Alexis Diaz allowed the first four batters he faced to reach, and four runs to give Pittsburgh the very improbable 13-9 lead.

Ian Gibaut pitched a scoreless ninth inning.

Up Next for the Cincinnati Reds

Pittsburgh Pirates at Cincinnati Reds

Sunday, September 24, 1:40 p.m. ET

TBD vs. Brandon Williamson (4-5, 4.56 ERA)

The post Reds let 9-0 lead slip away, fall to Pirates in heartbreaker appeared first on Redleg Nation.

The Cincinnati Reds had plenty of opportunities last night to pick up a win, but they just couldn’t get it done as Pittsburgh came back to pick up the win. The Pirates and Reds will play game two of their 3-game series tonight. First pitch is set for 6:40pm ET.

Starting Lineups

Starting Pitchers

Connor Phillips

After having some struggles in his first two starts in the big leagues, Phillips put together a strong start the last time out. Five days ago he pitched against Minnesota and struck out seven batters in 7.0 innings against the Twins. He has allowed five homers in his three starts.

The splits in the big leagues are such a small sample size that it’s not all that useful. With that said, early on there has been a huge difference in how much power right-handed hitters have produced compared to left-handed hitters. Lefties have struck out far more often.

Splits

Pitch Usage

Bailey Falter

In his last start things for Bailey Falter went in a different direction – he pitched the first inning but didn’t return. He had pitched six innings a week earlier. Now he’s back on the mound just four days later.

Despite being a left-handed pitcher, it’s lefties who are crushing the ball against Falter. The sample size is small, but left-handed hitters are hitting .359 and slugging .672 against him this season. Right-handed hitters don’t get on base much against him, don’t hit for a lot of power but aren’t hapless, and are hitting .251 against him.

Splits

Pitch Usage

When and Where

• Game time: 6:40pm ET
• Where: Great American Ball Park
• Watch: Bally Sports Ohio, MLB.tv (out of market)
• Listen: 700 WLW AM (Cincinnati area)
• Forecast: 74°, sunny, 0% chance of rain

News and Notes

Matt McLain begins a rehab assignment

The infielder is starting a rehab assignment tonight with the Triple-A Louisville Bats. He’s expected to play today and tomorrow, and if things go well he will re-join Cincinnati on Tuesday in Cleveland.

Harrison Bader out for the year, Antone unlikely to return

David Bell said that the chances for Tejay Antone returning in the postseason are remote. Harrison Bader is also out for the year.

— Charlie Goldsmith (@CharlieG__) September 23, 2023

Wild Card Standings

Division Standings

The post Pittsburgh Pirates vs Cincinnati Reds – September 23, 2023 appeared first on Redleg Nation.

Matt McLain is heading to Triple-A for the first time since May when he was called up. The infielder will begin a rehab assignment with the Louisville Bats tonight and he’ll play again on Sunday if he doesn’t have any issues. The plan is then for him to return to the active Cincinnati Reds roster on Tuesday when the club starts a 2-game series in Cleveland against the Guardians.

McLain has been out for nearly a month with a right oblique strain. He went on the injured list on August 28th. There’s little time left in the regular season, and the Reds need to win every game that they can given that they enter the slate of games on Saturday 1.5 games back of the Chicago Cubs for the final spot in the wild card standings. Cincinnati’s offense has been sputtering quite often down the stretch. When he went on the injured list, McLain was hitting .290/.357/.507 and was arguably the best hitter on the team.

If the plan goes like the organization hopes, Matt McLain will return for the final five games of the season. After the team plays two games in Cleveland on Tuesday and Wednesday, they’ll have an off day on Thursday before beginning a 3-game series to end the season in St. Louis against the Cardinals.

A long shot for the playoffs

Last night’s loss to Pittsburgh was a big blow to the chances for the Reds playoff hopes. It dropped them to 79-76. They’re behind both the Cubs (80-74) and Marlins (79-75). Cincinnati does have the tie breaker over the Cubs, but they do not have it over the Marlins – so they will have to finish ahead of them in the standings in order to get in. Fangraphs updated playoff odds put the Cubs at 53.1%, the Marlins at 41.1%, and the Reds at 18.8%.

The post Reds send Matt McLain to Triple-A to begin a rehab assignment appeared first on Redleg Nation.

With few games remaining in the season the Cincinnati Reds need to win as many as they can, and on Friday night they had ample opportunity to do just that…. but the bullpen and defense came back to bite them over and over as the Pittsburgh Pirates took a late lead and held on for a 7-5 win.

The Reds threatened early on, loading the bases with two outs in the bottom of the 1st inning thanks to walks to TJ Friedl and Christian Encarnacion-Strand, and then a hit batter (Joey Votto). Noelvi Marte hit the ball hard twice, but both times the ball was foul. All three runners would be stranded when Marte grounded into a force out.

Pittsburgh put some pressure on Andrew Abbott in the top of the 2nd after a leadoff double from Miguel Andujar and a single – one that didn’t advance Andujar who had to hold up to see if the ball was caught – from Jared Triolo to start the inning. The Reds young left-handed starter then took things into his own hands and he struck out the next three batters to strand both runners.

Elly De La Cruz led off the bottom of the 2nd with a single. He would then steal second. Later in the inning he stole third. That helped make Jonathan India’s fly out a productive one as De La Cruz tagged up and scored on the sacrifice fly that put Cincinnati up 1-0.

Ke’Bryan Hayes would tie the game up two innings later, cracking a solo homer to lead off the top of the 4th inning. The next inning it was the same thing, but it was Henry Davis with a leadoff homer this time around and it put the Pirates up 2-1.

Cincinnati got to work in the bottom of the inning with a 1-out single, a fielders choice that recorded no outs, and a single by to load the bases. Joey Votto grounded out, but tied the game up when TJ Friedl scored on the play. Noelvi Marte then picked up an infield single that drove in Spencer Steer to put the Reds up 3-2.

The lead didn’t last very long. Pittsburgh got two solo home runs off of Buck Farmer in the top of the 6th to tie things up and then take the 4-3 lead. Luke Maile picked up a 1-out single into shallow center and that set up a go-ahead, 2-run home run from TJ Friedl with two outs that put Cincinnati back in front 5-4, and Friedl let his dugout know about it, too.

OH LAWD, TERRY. @TjFriedl1 pic.twitter.com/YZeZGjh23Y

— Cincinnati Reds (@Reds) September 23, 2023

Ian Gibaut took over for Cincinnati in the top of the 7th and saw Ji Hwan Bae reached first on a single that was initially ruled an error on Jonathan India but changed to a single two innings later to lead off the inning. Gibaut would strike out Connor Joe, but Bae stole second base in the process to put the tying run into scoring position. Three pitches later he’d come in to score on a flare into shallow left by Bryan Reynolds and the game was tied up once again. Pittsburgh executed a perfect hit-and-run as Ke’Bryan Hayes slapped the ball to the vacated spot as India moved to cover the bag to put runners on the corners. Miguel Andujar then grounded one to India, who flipped to the bag for a force out, but Elly De La Cruz threw low over to first and it got by Votto to keep the inning alive and allow the go-ahead run to score.

A walk followed and that ended the night for Gibaut as the Reds called on Fernando Cruz from the bullpen. He’d get a strikeout to end the inning. Cruz returned for the top of the 8th and he struck out all three batters he faced. The bottom of the 8th began with a walk from Jake Fraley, who was then pinch run for by Stuart Fairchild. Tyler Stephenson followed up with a strikeout before Jonathan India grounded into a double play to end the frame.

Daniel Duarte took over for Cincinnati in the 9th inning and things did not go well as he walked the first batter he faced, hit the second one, then walked the third one before Derek Johnson made the walk to the mound to talk to him. The first pitch he threw after the visit nearly hit Jack Suwinski. Five pitches later Suwinski hit a sacrifice fly to extend the Pirates lead to 7-5. Another walk followed and David Bell, finally, decided to try another pitcher. He called on Derek Law and he got out of the inning without allowing any further damage.

The Reds got a leadoff walk from TJ Friedl on four pitches in the bottom of the 9th. Spencer Steer hit a grounder to third and Ke’Bryan Hayes came up with it and fired to second, but Friedl beat the throw to the bag and everyone was safe. Christian Encarnacion-Strand grounded into a double play to follow, moving Friedl over to third and leaving the game in the hands of Joey Votto. He would do his part, walking and keeping the game alive. Noelvi Marte came up next, but he struck out to end the game.

Key Moment of the Game

Take your pick: Jonathan India not coming up with the grounder in the 7th that led to two runs scoring that wound up giving the Pirates a lead, Daniel Duarte allowing four of the five batters he faced in the 9th to reach and have Pittsburgh pad their lead, the two home runs Buck Farmer gave up in the 6th that erased a Reds lead they had just gotten back in the previous half-inning.

Notes worth noting

According to the Reds television broadcast, Elly De La Cruz is the first player in their debut season to have 30 steals for Cincinnati since Chris Sabo in 1988. He’s only the 4th to ever do it for the Reds. The wording of “debut season” is a bit strange, because some guys would be called up in September the year before their “full season” as a rookie. Guys like Billy Hamilton, who stole 56 bases as a rookie don’t get counted because he had been called up the previous September. Still cool, but he’s the 14th Reds rookie to get 30 steals in a single season.

The loss, combined with a Cubs win earlier, puts Cincinnati 1.5 games back of the final wild card spot with just seven games remaining.

TJ Friedl went 2-2 with 3 walks, his 25th steal of the year, 2 runs, and 2 RBI. He did his part.

Up Next for the Cincinnati Reds

Pittsburgh Pirates vs Cincinnati Reds

Saturday September 23rd, 6:40pm ET

TBA vs. Connor Phillips (1-0, 5.74 ERA)

The post Reds bullpen, poor defense cost them in a 7-5 loss appeared first on Redleg Nation.

The Cincinnati Reds begin their final home series of the regular season tonight, hosting the Pittsburgh Pirates. Trailing two teams by a half-game for the final wild card spot, Cincinnati is in as close to “must win” mode as they can be the rest of the way. Tonight’s 1st pitch is set for 6:40pm ET.

Starting Lineups

Starting Pitchers

Andrew Abbott

On August 11th Abbott faced off against Pittsburgh, in Pittsburgh, and allowed two runs in 5.2 innings with nine strikeouts in a blowout Reds win. The lefty has struggled the last two times he’s taken the mound – giving up six runs in 4.0 innings against St. Louis and then  two runs in 3.2 innings in his last start against the Mets.

When it comes to the splits for Abbott, they are quite big. Right-handed hitters are solid against him. They don’t hit for a high average, but they have a good walk rate and hit for a good amount of power. Lefties don’t hit for average or power, and they also don’t walk. Opposing managers don’t give many lefties a chance to face Abbott.

Splits

Pitch Usage

Andre Jackson

The Reds got a chance to face Jackson on August 13th and scored three runs against him on five hits in 3.2 innings during a Reds win. He’s pitched in three games this month and hasn’t complete five innings in any of them while giving up 12 earned runs in 12.1 innings with nine walks to go along with six strikeouts.

The splits for Jackson are pretty big. And they are reverse splits, too. Right-handed hitters hit for a much higher average and hit for a lot more power. Lefties walk ever so slightly more often, but they don’t do nearly as much when they make contact against Jackson.

Splits

Pitch Usage

When and Where

• Game time: 6:40pm ET
• Where: Great American Ball Park
• Watch: Bally Sports Ohio, MLB.tv (out of market)
• Listen: 700 WLW AM (Cincinnati area)
• Forecast: 79°, sunny, 0% chance of rain

News and Notes

Matt McLain on track for Tuesday return

Matt McLain is here taking grounders at SS and hitting in live BP. David Bell: "We felt like he needed one more day of live batting practice."

McLain, if he gets through today without issue, will start a 2-game rehab assignment on Sat. at Louisville and rejoin the Reds Tues.

— Mark Sheldon (@m_sheldon) September 22, 2023

Reds sending 8 prospects to the AFL

The Arizona Fall League rosters were announced today and Cincinnati is sending eight prospects to join the Surprise Saguaros. The Reds are sending three position players and five pitchers out to the desert for five weeks starting in early October. I wrote nearly 1400 words about the group over at RedsMinorLeagues.com if you’re interested in more details.

Wild Card Standings

Division Standings

The post Pittsburgh Pirates vs Cincinnati Reds – September 22, 2023 appeared first on Redleg Nation.

We’re approaching the final week of the season and YOUR Cincinnati Reds are in a playoff race! Nate and I talk about crunch time for the 2023 Reds, predict how the season will finish, and discuss some mixed feelings about manager David Bell.

Please give us a thumbs up and subscribe to our YouTube channel. Seriously: SMASH that subscribe button! Of course, as always, you can listen to the audio version of the show as well:

Come join the family and support the podcast on Patreon. You can follow us on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook. Music for this episode provided by Freekbass, a big Reds fan and a friend of Redleg Nation.

If you prefer the audio podcasts, we’re available everywhere you find podcasts, such as Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon Music/Audible, Google Podcasts, and iHeart Radio. Please subscribe, and give us a rating/review over at iTunes/Apple Podcasts (or wherever you found us). If you like us, talk about us! However, if you don’t like us…maybe just keep your mouth shut?

Podcast-related questions and comments can be directed to the podcast via email (team@riverfrontcincy.com).

The post TR #502: It’s Crunch Time for the Redlegs! appeared first on Redleg Nation.

The Cincinnati Reds announced that they have released outfielder Hunter Renfroe. Earlier this week the club designated him for assignment. Renfore went unclaimed on waivers and was given his release by the Reds.

Cincinnati picked up Hunter Renfroe on waivers on August 31st from the Los Angeles Angels. He had been hitting for power in the American League West – where most parks are pitcher friendly – but wasn’t hitting for much average or getting on base. The Reds likely figured that he would see an uptick in power coming to Great American Ball Park.

That is not what happened. Not only did Renfroe not hit for power – he had just one extra-base hit in 44 plate appearances (a home run) – he also did not hit or get on base. In just under three weeks in the organization, Renfroe played in 14 games. He would start in nine of those games and come off of the bench in the others. The outfielder picked up five hits to go along with five walks during his time with the Reds. That was good for a .128 batting average, a .227 on-base percentage, and a .205 slugging percentage for those of you who didn’t want to look it up yourselves (that’s why you’re here, right?).

From the Reds perspective it made sense to give it a shot and see what happened. Sometimes things just don’t work out, and this is one of those cases. The club cut bait on the move after two-and-a-half weeks. Perhaps if this had happened earlier in the season the Cincinnati front office would have been willing to give him more time to see if he could come out of his slump. The Reds, though, only had two weeks left in the season and there was basically no wiggle room in that time for any underperformance as the team chases down a playoff spot.

The post Cincinnati Reds release Hunter Renfroe appeared first on Redleg Nation.

I guess the headline is a little deceiving because yes, the Cincinnati Reds can make the playoffs. There are eight games left on their schedule and they are currently one game out of the final playoff spot. Before we dive too far into things, let’s take a look at the standings and the playoff odds for the National League Wild Card:

The top three teams get a wild card spot and will make the playoffs. Philadelphia has a big lead and as such, their playoff odds (via Fangraphs) are about as high as a non-clinched of yet team can have. Arizona’s got to be feeling good about their chances, too. The Cubs, Marlins, and Reds, though, are all bunched up together and are more likely to not make the playoffs than to make the playoffs. San Francisco probably is going to need to win out the rest of the season, and get some help in order to grab a playoff spot.

Cincinnati has the tiebreaker over Chicago if those two teams were to wind up tied at the end of the season. They also hold the tiebreaker over Arizona if the two teams are tied. They do not hold the tiebreaker over the Marlins in a scenario in which those two are tied at the end of the season.

The Reds have today off. On Friday they will open up a 3-game series at home against the Pittsburgh Pirates. It’s the final homestand of the season, and perhaps the last chance to see Joey Votto play in Cincinnati, too. After that they’ll have an off day on Monday, play two games in Cleveland against the Guardians, have an off day on Thursday, and then wrap up the regular season with three games against the St. Louis Cardinals on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday.

All three teams left on the schedule are under .500. Two of the series are on the road – which has been a better result for the Reds this year. Cincinnati doesn’t control their own destiny, but they are close enough that if they end the season going 6-2 or better, then they’ll finish with 85 wins. That likely gets the job done. Anything less than that and things get real iffy, real quick.

The loss on Wednesday looms large. It’s a game that should have been a win, and while there are plenty of wins on the season that probably should have been losses, at this point in the season there’s so little time to make up for those games that it just feels larger.

As for the other clubs in the race, here’s how their schedules look:

Cubs – 1 game vs Pittsburgh, 3 games against Colorado, 3 games against Atlanta, 3 games vs Milwaukee.

Marlins – 3 games vs Milwaukee, 3 games vs New York (Mets), 3 games vs Pittsburgh

Dbacks – 3 games vs New York (Yankees), 2 games vs Chicago (White Sox), 3 games vs Houston

Giants – 7 games vs Los Angeles (Dodgers), 3 games vs San Diego

The post Reds Notebook: Can Cincinnati make the playoffs? appeared first on Redleg Nation.

Hunter Greene struck out 14 batters and allowed one run through seven innings. Then the bullpen struck and not in a good way as three relievers combined to give up four runs in the final two innings as the Minnesota Twins came from behind to hand Cincinnati one of it’s biggest, and toughest losses of the year.

Hunter Greene struck out the first two batters of the game before picking up a groundout of former teammate Donovan Solano. That was a sign of things to come for Greene on Wednesday afternoon. He would do the same thing in the 2nd inning.

It was the third inning that Minnesota began to put some pressure on Greene. Andrew Stevenson led off with a double and moved up to third on a single by Christian Vazquez. A sacrifice bunt moved Vazquez up to second base to put two runners in scoring position with one out, but then Greene did what he had done in the previous two frames and struck out two batters and that got him out of the jam.

In the bottom of the 3rd inning the Reds got some help from the Twins when Will Benson walked to lead off the inning and then Jonathan India was hit by a pitch to put two men on with one out. TJ Friedl then came through with an RBI single to put the home team up 1-0. The next inning saw the Reds add to their lead when Christian Encarnacion-Strand hit his 9th homer of the year to lead things off.

Hunter Greene had nine strikeouts entering the 6th inning and then proceeded to strike out the side, giving him a career high 12 of them. He’d pick up a 13th strikeout to begin the 7th, but then Willi Castro broke up his shutout with a solo home run. Another strikeout followed to give the right-handed starter 14 of them on the day.

With the Twins having cut the lead to 2-1, Cincinnati got to it on offense in the bottom of the inning. Will Benson tripled to lead off the inning, and then something weird happened. Luke Maile squared up to bunt, and he got the ball down, but he was thrown out at first and Benson had to stay put. But then David Bell called for a challenge, citing the ball actually hit Maile in the hand as he attempted to bunt. He was correct and the call was overturned. Since Maile did attempt the bunt, though, and the ball went fair, it was ruled as a dead ball strike. He lined the next pitch into center for an RBI single and the Reds went back up by two runs.

Ian Gibaut took over for Greene in the top of the 8th inning, ending Greene’s day with 14 strikeouts and just one walk in his 1-run, 7.0 innings pitched. Christian Vazquez doubled to lead off the inning. After a fly out, Edouard Julien singled in a run to make it 3-2. Donovan Solano would loop a 2-out single into center to keep the inning alive and move Julien up to second, where he was then pinch run for. Gibaut was able to avoid any further damage, getting  aground out to end the inning.

Alexis Diaz entered the game for the 9th to try and close out the game and the series. He couldn’t do it. Willi Castro laid down a bunt single to start the inning. Then he stole second base and the throw short-hopped India and ricocheted into center, allowing Castro to take third. Kyle Farmer then lined a single into right field to tie the game up. After a pop up, Diaz walked Christian Vazquez, and that led to a call to the bullpen to bring in Sam Moll. He’d give up a double steal before a strikeout for the second out of the inning. The Reds then intentionally walked Ryan Jeffers to face Jorge Polanco and he came through with a 2-run double to put the Twins up 5-3.

The bottom of the 9th inning began with a pinch-hit walk from Nick Martini that brought the tying run to the plate. Jonathan India struck out on three pitches before TJ Friedl flew out and then Spencer Steer grounded into a force out to end the game.

Key Moment of the Game

Jorge Polanco’s go-ahead 2-run single in the top of the 9th inning.

Notes worth noting

Hunter Greene’s 14 strikeouts are the most by a Red since Ron Villone struck out 16 in a complete game to end the 2000 season. Fun fact: Villone’s season high before that game was five. He had split time between the bullpen and rotation that season.

.@HunterGreene17 was dominant today for the @Reds, striking out a career-high 14. ? pic.twitter.com/HXg28rFiZn

— MLB (@MLB) September 20, 2023

The loss drops the Reds to 1.5 games back of the Cubs for the final wild card spot, 2.0 games behind Arizona for the second wild card spot, and a game back of Miami who is in the 4th spot. All three of those teams play later today.

Up Next for the Cincinnati Reds

Pittsburgh Pirates vs Cincinnati Reds

Friday September 22nd, 6:40pm ET

TBA vs. Andrew Abbott (8-5, 3.68 ERA)

The post Hunter Greene strikes out 14, Reds bullpen implodes in 5-3 loss appeared first on Redleg Nation.

Welcome to the final weekday matinee of the 2023 season at GABP.  The Reds need to win the current series finale against the Twins today after dropping last night’s middle game of the set 7-0. ‘Nuf said about that. Today is a new day and another chance to jump right back into the middle of the National League Wild Card chase.

Starting Lineups

Fraley pretty obviously is power limited currently because of his toe injury; but, he does appear to be better than the  alternatives.  At least he walked twice and had a single last night as opposed to multiple K’s.

Starting Pitchers

Hunter Greene

Hunter Greene makes his sixth start since returning to the Reds rotation on August 20. Greene’s last 3 starts have all been strong efforts from which the Reds emerged victorious after he pitched into the 6th inning of each game.  He has allowed a grand total of just 3 earned runs across 17 innings of work in these 3 starts The Reds desperately need this level of performance from Greene today.

On the season, Greene has severe reverse splits. Right handed batters have hit him both harder and more frequently. However in his 3 most recent starts he has held the opposition to a BA/OBP/SLG% line of  .136/.227/237.

The pitching charts still depict Greene as strictly a 3 pitch pitcher despite the the visual record indicating he is using different mixes of movement and velocity on his pitches than had been observed prior to his most recent IL stay.

Splits 

Pitch Usage

Bailey Ober

28 year old right hander Bailey Ober was drafted by the Twins in the 12th round of  the 2017  June draft (#346 overall) and has spent his entire career in the Minnesota organization. Ober made his MLB debut in May of 2021 and has been used exclusively as a starter 54 prior MLB appearances, 20 in 2021 followed by just 11 in 2022 when he was troubled by a groin injury much of the season. This is Ober’s 24th MLB start of the 2023 today but just his second start since returning  to the Twins after being optioned to AAA in late August.

Like Hunter Greene, Ober has a significant reverse slugging split due to having allowed 15 HR to right handed hitters. However his batting average and OBP against splits are virtually handedness neutral.

Ober leads with his fastball (46%) and uses his both his slider and change up around 20% of the time each. He is  not a power pitcher as his fastball averages only 91.3MPH. Nonetheless he sports nearly a 25% K rate and walks a miniscule 5% of batters he faces. Reds hitters will need to be patient and not chase his breaking pitches and change up if they hope to succeed against him.

Splits

Pitch Usage

Bullpens

Reds

The Reds late inning A team of Alexis Diaz, Ian Gibaut, and Lucas Sims has yet to see action in this series. Alex Young and Derek Law have worked consecutive games. They are probably unavailable.  Fernando Cruz and Daniel Duarte threw 25 and 29 pitches respectively on Tuesday. They are doubtful given the short turnaround.

Twins

No one for the Twins has worked consecutive nights. Their top backend relievers also have not seen action in the series. However Dallas Keuchel threw 58 pitches in long relief Monday and figures to be out.

News and Notes

The Reds AAA and AA teams are still playing read the latest about them here on our Reds Minor Leagues companion site.

David Bell speaks about Elly De La Cruz’s situation

David Bell on Elly De La Cruz: “It was another opportunity to really get Elly back on track giving him today and tomorrow’s off day. Two full days. He’s doing well. He has handled a lot. He’s handling everything. I do see signs of fatigue, which is very normal. Getting him those…

— Charlie Goldsmith (@CharlieG__) September 20, 2023

Here is the full truncated final sentence above from Bell, “Getting him (EDLC) those two days off is really important even with the importance of today’s game.”

When and Where

• Game time:  12:35pm ET
• Where: Great American Ball Park
• Watch: Bally Sports Ohio, MLB.tv (out of market)
• Listen: 700 WLW AM (Cincinnati area)
• Forecast: 75°, some clouds, 0% chance of rain

Wild Card Standings

So, What Do You Think???

Might it behoove the Reds to find a way to win today’s game despite come what may in the days ahead? If they do not win it, will come what may even matter? Negative points for saying the Reds have done better than expected in 2023. Triple negative points for use of the word sorting or speculating about 2024 personnel, lineups etc.

GO REDS!

The post Minnesota Twins vs Cincinnati Reds – September 20, 2023 appeared first on Redleg Nation.

More people are apt to know who won the Little League World Series rather than its NCAA counterpart. That might function as more of a commentary on over-investment in the outcome of youth sports, but the fact is that Josh The Pilot has more than once flown clients to college football games for a $30,000 single day. (That’s just for the airplane, not the tickets or the ground transport or the tip for the poor sports marketing intern dispatched to personally deliver Insert Local College Restaurant Food Here to the sky box.)

If we are a nation of baseball– and for quite a long time, that’s exactly what we were–then why do we associate pigskin instead of cowhide for the local alma mater?

Just Shinier? 

Given media emphasis on the seeming indestructability of baseball, as well as its early appearance in America, it’s understandable to assume that football is simply newer and therefore shinier to the young, with higher payouts. But– wanna know when the first college football game took place? In 1869, between Princeton and Rutgers. That’s the same year the Reds were founded.

Organized baseball was well in place by the 1840s, but in the Ivy League, at least, they were already well on their way to College GameDay. By the 1890s college teams were pulling five figure crowds in the South, who took in upon themselves to re-fight the Civil War with one another each fall, largely with coaches swiped from Northern campuses.

A college campus is a culture. A small stadium shared with eight other motley teams is not.

Money for the Marching Band

The obvious reason for why baseball never quite took roots on campus while football shuts down entire towns seems obvious: College teams are the de facto minor league of the NFL, and low-pro baseball teams are left to cobble together promos like Nobody Night  to keep pace.

One could also argue that the competition of baseball is spread too thin; while the larger percentage of MLB players are plucked from the college system rather than the farm, the hyper-local nature of local teams– an asset rather than a setback in terms of emotional attachment– means that it’s difficult to sustain the sort of wide fanbase necessary to fund a true Big 12 machine.

Packers Fans in the Pubs

Absolutely none of this happens in Europe (they’re too busy with soccer) and it makes sense that football’s distinctly American flavor helps to concentrate its talent on one continent– a continent in which the sport is even more popular in Latin America.

And in addition to that, baseball must share its on-base percentage kings with Asia. Despite the NFL’s insistence upon barging into England once a year, they’re not exactly waving Packers flags in Gloucestershire.

That’s because it’s ours.

And they know it.

What We Watch

So if you’re running athletic department, you are going to add another flat screen TV to the locker of each individual player, not invest in a pitching clinic run by Corbin Burnes and Sonny Gray with a special appearance by Shohei Ohtani. The money follows.

And that is why have you never just stumbled upon a televised college baseball game on a Saturday afternoon. If you do, it’s probably because the network has exhausted its supply of cornhole championships and weekly World’s Strongest Man competitions.

Given what’s become of the recruiting-riddled core of college ball, perhaps that’s for the best. Those boys might not play for the biggest crowds, but they’re far closer to the origins of the sport than their brothers down the quad and on the gridiron.

The post Baseball Is Life: Campus Factors appeared first on Redleg Nation.

The Cincinnati Reds never got going and the Minnesota Twins scored in five different innings. Those two things made for an easy Twins victory on Tuesday night as Minnesota evened up the series. The two will play on Wednesday afternoon in the final game of a 3-game set.

Fernando Cruz struck out two batters in a perfect 1st inning. He walked Max Kepler to lead off the 2nd, and Kepler would steal second base as Willi Castro struck out for the first out. Cruz followed up with a strikeout of Alex Kirilloff for the second out of the inning, but it was the final batter he faced on the day. Buck Farmer came out of the bullpen to face Ryan Jeffers and then walked him on six pitches. Matt Wallner came through with a 2-out single that brought in a run to put the Twins in front 1-0. In a match up of Farmer’s, it was Buck who came out on top of Kyle, with the latter flying out to center to end the inning.

Daniel Duarte took over for Cincinnati to start the 3rd inning with his team trailing 1-0. He had to work around a leadoff walk and a 1-out infield hit, but he kept Minnesota off the board. Alex Young couldn’t say the same in the top of the 4th as he gave up a 1-out, solo home run to Ryan Jeffers that extended the Twins lead to 2-0. Young walked Matt Wallner to follow, and that ended his day as Ben Lively entered the game and struck out both hitters he faced to end the inning.

The Reds tried to get a rally going in the bottom of the 4th with two outs. Spencer Steer picked up Cincinnati’s first hit – a double – and Jake Fraley followed up with a walk. That led to a mound visit. On the first pitch to Tyler Stephenson, which he swung through, the Reds pulled off a double steal. Four pitches later Stephenson hit a blooper into shallow center, but Willi Castro caught it on a slide to end the inning and keep the home team with a zero on the board.

Ben Lively walked the tightrope in the 5th, working around a walk and a single to keep the Twins lead at 2-0. He couldn’t quite work his way out of a jam in the next inning. He gave up four straight 1-out singles that led to two runs as Minnesota extended their lead to 4-0. A similar scenario played out in the 7th as he walked the leadoff batter before giving up a 2-run homer to Willi Castro.

Cincinnati looked primed to get on the board in the bottom of the 7th inning when Tyler Stephenson crushed a ball to dead center, only to see Willi Castro leap at the wall, reach over it and bring the ball back in to rob him of a 2-run homer. With Joey Votto due up and a righty on the mound, he was pinch hit for by Nick Martini, who struck out. Christian Encarnacion-Strand followed with a strikeout of his own to end the inning.

Down 6-0, the Reds sent Ben Lively out to the mound to begin the 8th inning. He’s give up a leadoff single and a 1-out walk before he was replaced by Derek Law. He’d give up a single to load the bases and then throw a wild pitch to bring in a run and make it 7-0.

TJ Friedl led off the bottom of the 9th inning with a single. After a fielder’s choice, Jake Fraley came through with a single to put runners on the corners. The game would end without the Reds cashing in once again, as a ground ball double play wrapped things up as the Twins evened up the series at one game each.

Key Moment of the Game

Willi Castro’s entire 7th inning. He hit a 2-run homer in the top of the 7th to make it 6-0, but in the bottom of the inning he also robbed a 2-run homer from Tyler Stephenson – seemingly giving a sign that a comeback was not in the works on this night.

Notes worth noting

The Reds managed just four hits in the game and walked just twice. The pitching staff combined to walk eight batters and they gave up 11 hits.

Miami walked off the Mets, which puts them a half-game up on the Reds in the wild card standings. Chicago, Arizona, and San Francisco are all still playing their games (Arizona and San Francisco are playing each other).

Up Next for the Cincinnati Reds

Minnesota Twins vs Cincinnati Reds

Wednesday September 20th, 12:35pm ET

Bailey Ober (7-6, 3.67 ERA) vs Hunter Greene (4-6, 4.45 ERA)

The post Reds offense goes silent in a 7-0 loss to the Twins appeared first on Redleg Nation.