Let’s recap tonight’s titanic struggle….
FINAL — 13 innings
Washington 2
Cincinnati 1
W: C. Stammen (2-0)
L: S. Marshall (0-1)
BOX SCORE
POSITIVES
–A vintage Bronson Arroyo outing: 7.1 innings, no runs allowed on three hits and one walk, with four strikeouts. You can’t ask for much more out of Bronson at this point.
–Joey Votto was the lone offensive bright spot. Votto reached base five times, going 2-3 with three walks.
–Some good relief work in this one, from Aroldis Chapman, Logan Ondrusek, and…wait for it…Alfredo Simon! Believe it or not.
NEGATIVES
–The offense is struggling, ladies and germs. No other way to put it, and I don’t know what the answer is. (Of course, that wasn’t exactly the strongest lineup I’ve ever seen on the field.)
–After Bronson Arroyo left the game, it took Bill Bray precisely two pitches to give up a homer and the lead. (Some of you thought Ryan Ludwick should have caught that ball, but that’s a very difficult play.)
–Sean Marshall had a rough outing in only his third game of the season. Marshall only notched one out in the bottom of the thirteenth inning before giving up the game-winning hit. It seemed like the strike zone got squeezed pretty tight for Marshall during that inning, for what it’s worth.
–Can’t blame Bray or Marshall for this one, though. The responsibility for this loss, once again, falls squarely on an offense that simply is not producing.
–Drew Stubbs (.129/.182/.129) and Wilson Valdez (.250/.250/.313) were each 0-6. Scott Rolen (.115/.179/.192) and Jay Bruce were 0-5, but at least Rolen drew a base on balls.
NOT-SO-RANDOM THOUGHTS
–That wasn’t fun, was it? “Deflating” is the proper term, I’d say.
–Votto reached base five times. The rest of the Cincinnati roster reached base five times. That’s ugly.
–If you have been a loyal reader for any amount of time, you know that I am generally patient with players. I try not to make sweeping pronouncements about players when they are struggling. So all I’ll say is this: I’m starting to get very concerned about Drew Stubbs.
–The Reds have now lost four out of five games. They have scored a grand total of nine runs during that span. Is that good?
–Brandon Phillips made an appearance for the first time since signing that big contract extension. He pinch hit in the thirteenth inning, but did not get a hit.
–The good guys are going to win tomorrow, right? Right?