Let’s recap today’s titanic struggle….
FINAL
San Francisco 6
Cincinnati 5
W: J. Lopez (2-0)
L: S. Marshall (0-2)
S: S. Casilla (2)
BOX SCORE
POSITIVES
–Okay, that one hurt. It’s hard to identify many positives when your closer blows a two-run lead in the ninth with the Reds on the verge of a sweep. I’ll try…
–Jay Bruce was 3-4 with two runs scored and a 2-run homer. Drew Stubbs had two hits, including a double. Scott Rolen hit a homer. Brandon Phillips had a couple of hits, too.
–Homer Bailey gave up two earned runs in six and a third; he also singled in a run at the plate. Logan Ondrusek pitched a strong 1.2 innings.
NEGATIVES
–Well, that homer by Angel Pagan in the top of the ninth that turned a 5-3 Reds lead into a 6-5 deficit was a negative. Didn’t enjoy that.
–Sean Marshall gave up three runs, three hits, and a walk in the ninth to blow his first save as a Red.
NOT-SO-RANDOM THOUGHTS
–Just a brutal, brutal loss. A punch in the gut.
–The pitch just previous to the home run was an 0-2 offering from Marshall to Pagan. Everyone — and I mean everyone — except the umpire thought it was a strike right down the middle. The Giants announcers immediately said that it should have been called strike three. Home plate umpire Tim Welke completely blew it.
Now, that doesn’t absolve Marshall of responsibility for throwing a terrible pitch on the next one. Still…it hurts when there is such a clear instance of an umpire screwing your team.
–Sean Marshall gave up one home run all of last season.
–Hey, the Reds won the series, though! I know, that’s little consolation after this heart-breaker, but still…. Two out of three ain’t bad. Now I want to see the Reds take about 7 of the next nine against the Astros, Cubs, and Pirates.
Source: FanGraphs