Let’s recap today’s titanic struggle….
FINAL
Washington 7
Cincinnati 6
W: C. Stammen (1-0)
L: J.J. Hoover (0-2)
BOX SCORE
POSITIVES
–Shin-Soo Choo has just been out of his mind since the season started. He can’t possibly play this well all year, but I’ll take it as long as it lasts.
–A three hit day for Todd Frazier. Choo, Phillips, and Bruce also had two each.
–Joey Votto tied the games by tripling and then willing a wild pitch with his mind. He also reached base two other times.
NEGATIVES
–A couple of pinch hitters failed to come through when needed. That’s going to happen at times, but if either Paul or Hannahan gets a hit, the Reds win this game.
–The bullpen did not do what it was supposed to do tonight.
–The Reds did not win.
NOT-SO-RANDOM THOUGHTS
–2, 3, 1, 3, 3. Those are the number of times Joey Votto has reached base in each of the first five games of the season. And it doesn’t even feel like he’s really gotten going. What’s it going to look like when he goes on a little tear? He has an .869 OPS and that seems like his floor.
–A lot of people were piling on Mike Leake on Twitter. You know what? It wasn’t a terrible start. On a lot of teams he would be the #2 or #3 starter. There are some Reds teams from the last decade where that would be the case. He’s our number five. That’s a good thing.
–Chapman sure was good tonight. If only the Reds could find a way to get him more innings.
–I didn’t list J.J. Hoover as a negative largely because I don’t think you can blame the poor guy. Sean Marshall, get well soon, please.
–And about Sean Marshall. If it’s this bad, why not DL him to start the season? If the Reds have depth anywhere, it’s with relief pitching.
–Reds need a win tomorrow to have a winning home stand. Cueto vs. Strasburg should be a good one.