| Final | R | H | E |
|---|---|---|---|
|  Cincinnati Reds (5-6-2) | 0 | 3 | 1 |
|  Colorado Rockies (6-4-3) | 1 | 7 | 0 |
|  W: Logan L: Holmberg SV: Kahnle |
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| | Box Score | MLB.com Recap | AP Recap | | |||
Pitching: Anthony DeSclafani took the mound today and was strong. He threw four shutout innings, allowing only two hits, one of which Josh Satin was lucky wasn’t scored an error. For DeSclafani, it was a great rebound from his previous outing, keeping him alive in the large competition to fill out the starting rotation.
JJ Hoover showed why despite a tough 2014, it is so hard to discount his ability to help the 2015 bullpen. It took him only six pitches to get the first two batters to strike out, neither of them managing to make contact even once, before getting his third out on the first pitch of the third batter. More of that Hoover would go a long way towards the Reds having a dominant bullpen once more.
David Holmberg came in for the sixth and seventh innings, and almost immediately getting into trouble until Jay Bruce’s cannon arm and Brandon Barnes over-sliding got an out on third base, creating a situation where there was a runner on first and one out rather than first and third with no outs. Holmberg got himself out of the inning by catching Daniel Descalso looking for strike three. He’d eventually give up the only run in the game in the seventh on a fielder’s choice.
Reds 2013 first round pick Michael Lorenzen finished the final two innings of the game in his third scoreless relief appearance, totaling six innings. He is certainly making a case for himself to be included on the Opening Day bullpen. He spent last season entirely as a starter in AA, pitching 120.2 innings with a 3.13 ERA.
Hitting: Not much to say here in a game where the Reds only had three hits and three walks. Josh Satin had a good day at the plate, going 1-1 with a single and a walk. The duo of shortstop Zack Cozart and Eugenio Suarez who was the designated hitter combined for the other two hits on the day. Joey Votto did what Joey Votto does, and drew two walks, but failed to advance safely to second either time, once on a Brandon Phillips strikeout, and once on a TOOTBLAN where he thought a ball was caught, so returned to first.
The Rest
-Jason Bourgeois went down in the game after putting the ball into play in his at bat, and was able to walk off under his own power, but immediately was removed from the game and went back to the Reds area outside of the field. John Fay reports that it is his shoulder and he will be getting an MRI. Hopefully he is fine, as he has been hitting well this spring with a .385 AVG and .526 SLG in nineteen at bats.
-The Reds turned another double play on defense, extending their streak of at least one per game to nine games. With so much uncertainty on who’ll be #3-5 in the starting rotation, it’s good to know they’ll be getting some help from some serious gloves.
-Jay Bruce has now managed to hit a double, hit a homer, and get an outfield assist this Spring. We can stop worrying about if his knee is back to full strength. Another season of 2013 Bruce with at least 40 doubles, 30 homers, and plus defense would be very welcome. He alone could be a six win (4.9 bWAR 2013 vs -1.1 bWAR 2014) difference from last season.
Next Up
The Reds ace Johnny Cueto goes up against former Red Travis Wood as the Reds take on the Cubs at 4:05pm EST. The game will be showed on delay on MLB Network, and live on WLW 700.