Let’s recap tonight’s titanic struggle….
FINAL
Cincinnati 3
Arizona 4
W: B. Ziegler (4-1)
L: A. Chapman (3-3)
BOX SCORE
POSITIVES
–Mike Leake was outstanding, once again. Leake pitched eight innings, allowing two runs on four hits and a walk. His ERA is now down to 2.61.
–Jay Bruce was outstanding, once again. Bruce hit a homer in the second (a mammoth shot) to give the Reds a 1-0 lead, then hit another huge homer in the top of the ninth to turn a 2-1 deficit into a 3-2 lead. He was 2-3 on the night, with a walk, and drove in all three Reds runs. He’s on fire.
NEGATIVES
–After Bruce gave the Reds a ninth-inning lead, Aroldis Chapman proceeded to give it back almost immediately. Chapman gave up two hits, two walks, and two runs in the bottom half of the inning — and didn’t record a single out. It was bad, Reds fans. Just terrible.
NOT-SO-RANDOM THOUGHTS
–These are the game the Redlegs need to win. Sheesh. I feel like I’ve been punched in the gut.
–Jay Bruce is now hitting .279/.325/.532 with 18 homers. Bruce’s last seven hits have all been homers. The last Red to accomplish that feat? Our old friend Adam Dunn.
–The season is decidedly not over, as some of you seem to think. But this doesn’t feel good, I concede. I hate when the Reds lose games they should have won.