Let’s recap tonight’s titanic struggle….
FINAL
Milwaukee 7
Cincinnati 2
W: Z. Greinke (4-1)
L: C. Reineke (0-1)
BOX SCORE
POSITIVES
–Jeremy Horst threw the ball fairly well out of the pen. Drew Stubbs had a couple of hits, including a double. Jay Bruce had another RBI.
NEGATIVES
–Really uninspired performance by the good guys tonight.
–The Reds really have a shortstop problem, and there’s no sugarcoating it. Edgar Renteria (.234/.324/.266) started. Paul Janish (.221/.250/.260). Both made errors that would be unacceptable for a Little Leaguer.
–Scott Rolen is looking awfully old right now. He went 0-4 tonight, and he’s now hitting .246/.301/.385. He still has fewer than 150 plate appearances this season, so it isn’t time to hit the panic button yet…but after his performance last September/October, the signs aren’t encouraging.
NOT-SO-RANDOM THOUGHTS
–That was ugly. I just want to forget about it and go to bed.
–I have a hard time faulting Dusty, but you can tell he’s skittish about his bullpen. In the bottom of the fourth, the Reds had bases loaded and no outs in a 4-1 game, with Chad Reineke at the plate. It would have been a good spot for a pinch-hitter, but Dusty was (understandably) afraid of bullpen shenanigans, and he let Reineke hit. Double play.
Then Dusty left Reineke in the game too long in the seventh, inexplicably. Not sure there’s any explanation for Dusty’s decisions other than the recent bullpen woes.
–I don’t know what the answer is (Zack Cozart?), but something has to give with this shortstop situation. Things aren’t getting any better, and when you can’t even count on Janish for great defense, you have problems.
–Reineke battled, but he’s a 29 year old who really shouldn’t be needed by a team like the Reds. He did the best he could, and his effort is definitely appreciated. As Dave said in the game thread (I’m going to agree with Dave?), however, this loss is pinned on Edinson Volquez. If Volquez weren’t such a headcase, the Reds wouldn’t have needed to toss Reineke out there against a division rival.
–Reds have lost 11 of 14. That’s not good, is it?