| Final | R | H | E |
|---|---|---|---|
|  Cincinnati Reds  (26-29) | 4 | 9 | 0 |
|   Aridzona Diamondbacks  (23-36) | 3 | 9 | 0 |
|  W: Simon (7-3)    L: Miley (3-6)   S: Chapman (7) | |||
|  Fangraphs Box Score/Win Probability Graph/Play by Play |   ESPN Box Score  |   Photos | |||
Relentlessness
Early Friday morning, as the dust settled from the Collmenter Apocalypse, you could have squinted until you looked like this and not seen the Cincinnati Reds at 26-29 with a winning road trip in hand. Well done Reds. And well done Bryan Price for rallying the troops from rock bottom.ÂÂ
Positives
The day after the offense scored five runs without benefit of a home run, the Reds bats put together a four-homer day, with solo shots from Zack Cozart (2), Todd Frazier (10), Ryan Ludwick (4) and Chris Heisey (2).
In addition to the dinger, Ryan Ludwick saved a run with a diving catch in left field in the bottom of the seventh inning. Ludwick’s range is limited, as the next ball proved, but he generally catches what he reaches, even tough ones. Speaking of Ludwick’s range, in the eighth inning, Zack Cozack ran out most of the way into left field to catch a – yes, fly ball – to end the inning. Cozart is great at those plays over his head.
Jonathan Broxton continues to amaze. He struck out Paul Goldschmidt and Miguel Montero in the eighth inning. Broxton did give up a hit. But then, firing 94-mph fastballs, he retired tough left-handed hitter Eric Chavez on the previously mentioned Cozart gem.
Aroldis Chapman hit 103 on the radar gun, retiring the D-Backs. “You’re not in Double-A anymore, young man.” — Chris Welsh. Chapman also threw a 90-mph change-up for a strike.
Negatives
In the second inning, Brayan Peña initiated one of the worst base-running gaffes of the season (a towering bar). Loyal Nation member, Al, broke down the gory details in the comment section: With runners at first and third and one out, teams score 1.11 runs on average. With a runner only at third and two outs, teams score .33 runs on average. So Pena cost the Reds .78 expected runs by starting to break for second with no chance of making it. With a runner at only at second and two outs, teams score .29 runs on average. So Mesoraco trying to score from third cost the Reds .04 expected runs.
Not so random thoughts
A winning road trip. How about that. Sure, Arizona Diamondbacks caveat applies. But Clayton Kershaw, too.
The Reds received outstanding injury news regarding first baseman Joey Votto. Bryan Price broke it before the game that Votto’s leg strength has recovered and he was ready to begin a short rehab start before joining the Reds. The official line is that Votto will take Monday off and his status reassessed on Tuesday. FYI, on Monday, the Dayton Dragons play at home against the Lansing Lugnuts and the AAA Bats play the Columbus Clippers in Louisville. If “short” means one night, Votto could suit up with the wishbone “C” on Tuesday.
The timing couldn’t be better as the club returns to GABP for a challenging ten-game home stand that includes three against the NL-best San Francisco Giants and four against the Los Angeles Dodgers. Remember them? In-between the Reds play the Phillies and surely face Cole Hamels and Cliff Lee in all three games.