The Reds had a big ten-run inning outburst last night, but the offense was nowhere to be found tonight. The Reds fell 5-1 in the first of a three game series against the Dodgers at Great American Ballpark.
Reds starter John Lamb had a rough thirty-pitch first inning, but was able to survive it by only allowing one run to score. Lamb pitched a scoreless second inning, but he allowed a two-run homer to Justin Turner in the third inning to give the Dodgers a 3-0 lead.
The Dodgers blew the game open in the sixth inning off Ryan Mattheus. Dodgers pitcher, Alex Wood, singled with two outs in the inning, and the next batter Jimmy Rollins hit the ball out of the park to give the Dodgers a 5-0 lead.
The Reds offense couldn’t get anything going against Dodgers starter Alex Wood. He dominated the Reds through the first five innings. Don Mattingly then strangely pulled Wood from the game after a Brandon Phillips single with two outs and the bases empty in the sixth inning. Wood had only thrown 88 pitches too. He was none too pleased either that Donnie Baseball pulled him.
The move to pull Alex Wood backfired on Mattingly. The next batter, Todd Frazier, ripped his league-leading 38th double down the left-field line to make it a 5-1 game. Mattingly had to go to the bullpen again in the inning, but J.P. Howell was able to get of it.
The Reds had a chance to tie the game in the eighth inning. The Reds loaded the bases with two outs for Jay Bruce. He however struck out on a 2-2 pitch to end the threat. Kenley Jansen retired the Reds in order in the ninth inning to finish off a 5-1 win for the Dodgers.
| Final | R | H | E |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cincinnati Reds (52-72) | 1 | 7 | 0 |
| Los Angeles Dodgers (68-56) | 5 | 7 | 0 |
| W: Wood (9-8) L: Lamb (0-2) | |||
| FanGraphs Win Probability | Box Score | Game Thread | |||
Biggest Play of the Game
According to Fangraphs WPA statistic (winning percentage added), the most important play of the game was John Lamb allowing a 2-run home run to Justin Turner with 1 out in the 3rd inning, giving the Dodgers a 3-0 lead. That play decreased the Reds chances of winning by 16.4% (from 34.8% to 18.4%).
Positives
For John Lamb, it was once again just one mistake to a Dodgers hitter than separated him from having an average start to a good one. I’ll continue to take the glass half full look on Lamb. He struck out six batters in five innings, which is always a good thing. His stuff looks good, and when he keeps the ball down as the Cowboy said, he can be a good pitcher. The most exciting thing about Lamb through three big league starts: 21 K, 5 BB.
Joey Votto walked three times, and has now walked in six straight games (the longest active streak in the MLB). There just aren’t word to describe how good Joey Votto has been in the second half, and the season he is putting together. Votto moved into 5th in the MLB in fWAR today at 5.8 fWAR. He had 2.9 fWAR at the all-star break, and was tied for 29th in the MLB with Dee Gordon.
Dodgers broadcaster and former pitcher Orel Hershiser had this to say about Votto after his third walk tonight: “He has one of the best eyes, maybe of all-time.”
Joey Votto has now reached 107 times in 200 PA. Last player to do that was Barry Bonds who never had less than 113 in 200 PA in 2004. #Reds
— Joel Luckhaupt (@jluckhaupt) August 25, 2015
@wickterrell Votto has 103 BBs
Frazier, BP, Billy, and Byrd have 102 BBs total— Sr VP of the MCU (@thecvail) August 25, 2015
Sam LeCure continued his great start after being called up last week. LeCure pitched a perfect inning tonight, and has now retired 14 of the 15 batters he has faced in the big leagues in 2015. Good for Sam.
Todd Frazier and Ivan De Jesus Jr. each had two hits.
Negatives
The Reds offense was pretty terrible tonight.
Jay Bruce is really having a terrible August. He was 0 for 3 tonight, including striking out with the bases loaded in the 8th inning. Bruce entered play today hitting .143/.170/.274 in August.
The one thing that I don’t understand is why so many people (including a certain father and son) constantly complain about Bruce (.755 OPS) any chance they get, yet praise Brandon Phillips (.712 OPS). The one thing that I hear the most is how inconsistent Bruce is. Well boys and girls, I went through the numbers: since June 2008 (Jay Bruce’s first full month in the MLB), Bruce has had an OPS of .700 or better in 31 months. You know how many times Phillips has had an OPS of .700 or better over that span? 26 times. Hmmmmm……
Not so random thoughts…………….
Former Red, Paul Janish played in an MLB game tonight for the first time since September 2013. Janish got a hit in his first AB (video), and also made a really nice diving stop (video). I always had a soft spot for ole’ Soft J. It’s good to see him getting another chance with a big league club.
Up Next:
Dodgers at Reds
Wednesday, 7:10 PM
TV: FOX Sports Ohio
David Holmberg (6.57 ERA) vs Brett Anderson (3.52 ERA)