Titanic Struggle Recap: Is there anything Todd Frazier cannot do?

The Good
–Todd Frazier homered in the fourth inning to give the Reds a 2-0 lead. Then, in the bottom of the 13th, Frazier launched a walkoff grand slam into the left-center field seats to send the Reds home happy.

–Jay Bruce had a five-hit night. That’s good, right? Bruce was 5-6 with a couple of doubles and two runs scored. Bryan Pena had four hits of his own. In the bottom of the tenth, Pena doubled and had a chance to score Bruce with the winning run. Third base coach Jim Riggleman took a chance by sending Bruce home, and it was the correct decision. The Tigers had to make a perfect play to get Bruce at home…and they did, unfortunately.

–Aroldis Chapman struck out the side in the ninth. He’s good. And will likely be playing for another team soon, I presume.

–Donovan Hand made his Reds debut tonight, and he pitched a scoreless inning in the tenth. Then he pitched a scoreless inning in the eleventh. Then he pitched a scoreless inning in the twelfth. Let’s give that guy a…well, a hand.

–Actually, since we’ve just mentioned Chapman and Hand, let’s note that the Reds bullpen, by and large, did a pretty good job tonight. Ryan Mattheus allowed a run, but Manny Parra, Carlos Contrera, and Burke Badenhop were practically perfect.

The Bad
–Brandon Phillips and Ivan DeJesus hit 1-2 tonight. They went a combined 0-12, before BP’s single in the bottom of the 13th. They finished 1-13. That’s not good.

Not-So-Random Thoughts
–Long night, but that’s the way to end it.

–Frazier is hitting .294/.361/.639 with 22 homers and 46 RBI. If he isn’t an All-Star, they shouldn’t even bother to play the game.

–Johnny Cueto was not exactly vintage Cueto today. He pitched just 5.1 innings (thanks to the rain), allowing three runs on three hits and two walks.

–The Reds tied the game at 4 in the eighth inning, when Pena hit a ball up the middle that caromed off second base and into the outfield, scoring Jay Bruce. If that ball doesn’t hit the bag, there’s a decent chance that the Reds don’t win this game. Baseball is funny.

–One hour, 12 minute rain delay in the sixth. There’s always a rain delay or extra innings (or both) on nights when I re-emerge from hiding to do the Recap here at The Nation.

I know this is controversial, but I’m not sure a ball club needs 9 relievers.

— Chris Garber (@cgarber8) June 18, 2015

–Last Reds player with a five-hit night? Willy Taveras, of course, back in 2009. Of course.

–I’m tired. Good night.