Here’s MLB.com’s game story, which focuses largely on Bronson Arroyo, as you might expect:
When they traded for him late last month, the Reds hoped Bronson Arroyo would be a boost for their rotation.
They never expected him to help their lineup, too.
It would be tough to top the kind of home debut Arroyo enjoyed during Wednesday’s 8-6 win over the Cubs that split the two-game series. Not only did the right-hander throw a solid 6 2/3 innings, he homered in his first at-bat. Later in the afternoon, he also executed a perfect sacrifice bunt and drew a walk.
“If you had [asked] me before the game, ‘Would [you] take that?’ Of course,” Arroyo said. “I would take it 50 times over.” …
“I hadn’t hit one since high school,” Arroyo said. “Guys were laughing because I guess I kind of walked it off a little or something. I didn’t run hard. I knew I hit it out of the park, but I wasn’t especially trying to jog around the bases. I was in another world after hitting it.”
Several Reds offered the conventional high-fives when he returned. Someone who knows about home runs — Ken Griffey Jr. — offered a bow from the top step of the dugout.
“For a guy that doesn’t get a chance to hit a lot, he helped himself out, and it was a little boost for us,” said Griffey, who added his own special homer in the fifth inning. It was his 537th career blast, which passed Mickey Mantle and placed the center fielder all alone in 12th place on the all-time homers list.
“We were teasing him about having a double ear-flapped helmet,” Griffey continued. “It worked for him. If he keeps swinging like that and putting down the bunt like he did, you’ll see all of us with double ear-flapped helmets on.”
I love stories like that. I like debuts like that even better. Reminds me of Joe Randa’s introduction to Cincinnati fans last April.
UPDATE: On the blog side, here’s what JD, Red Hot Mama, Shawn, Big Red Mechanic, and We Heart the Reds had to say.
Back to the MSM, here are the game stories from the Enquirer and the Post.