Let’s recap tonight’s titanic struggle….
FINAL
Cincinnati Reds 12
Houston Astros 9
W: S. LeCure (1-1)
L: F. Rodriguez (1-6)
S: A. Chapman (5)
Box Score
POSITIVES
–How about that bullpen? Except for Hoover, it was excellent work as the Astros did not score after the fourth.
–A special nod to Aroldis Chapman. He struck out the side again. There are no words.
–Joey Votto was 4 for 4 with a homer and a walk. I’m just going to say it: I think he’s the best player in baseball. He is having an absolutely historic season for a Red.
–Drew Stubbs had three hits today while Cozart and Phillips had two each. It was a good day for the top of the order.
NEGATIVES
–Mat Latos. That was just not a good start. We’re 1/3 of the way there now and Latos needs to be more consistent. I preach patience as much as anyone, and I’m sure he’ll work out for the Reds, but the advanced metrics don’t like him any more than the traditional stats do.
NOT-SO-RANDOM THOUGHTS
–This was a wild game, but it was fun and the Reds came out on top. You hear it all the time, but good teams win the weird games, and this was a weird game. In the end, it was the bullpen that allowed the Reds to win tonight.
–The Reds are now a season high eight games over .500 and with a Cardinal loss, they now lead the division by 3.5 games. I will always take that on June 2.
–I’m just going to keep saying it. It is a crying shame that Chapman is a reliever right now.
–Reds go for the sweep tomorrow before a travel day when they’ll head home to face the Pirates for the one millionth time this season. Tomorrow is Sunday, so victory is all but assured. Go Redlegs.