The Reds made their first trip to Anaheim since 2002. Two of the best hitters in baseball, Joey Votto an Mike Trout got to face off against one another. Both players wasted no time making their presence known.
Joey Votto hit a two run home run in the top of the first inning to give the Reds a 2-0 lead. A few minutes later, Mike Trout hit a two run home run in the bottom of the first inning to tie the game at two.
The Angels however kept hitting home runs. They hit five total bombs on the evening, and chased Reds starter Dan Straily before he could finish the third inning. The Reds eventually would fall 9-2. The Reds have now lost 6 of 8.
| Final | R | H | E |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cincinnati Reds (55-75) | 2 | 8 | 0 |
| Los Angeles Angels (57-74) | 9 | 14 | 0 |
| W: Shoemaker (9-13) L: Straily (10-7) | |||
| 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 Joey Votto’s 2-run home run with 1 out in the 1st inning, giving the Reds a 2-0 lead. That play increased the Reds chances of winning by 17.0% (from 52.1% to 69.1%).
Player of the Game
Matt Shoemaker: 7.0 IP, 7 H, 2 ER, 0 BB, 7 K, 3.01 FIP
Shoemaker got off to a rough start, allowing the 2-run home run to Votto in the first inning. He recovered quickly, and pitched seven strong innings. His command was sharp, as he didn’t walk a batter all night.
Positives
Joey Votto hit his 22nd home run of the season in the first inning, giving the Reds a 2-0 lead at the time.
Billy Hamilton lead the game off with a single, and then stole second base.
Adam Duvall and Ramon Cabrera each had two hits.
Zack Cozart made a really nice catch in the 5th inning, reaching over the tarp on the third base line. Cozart didn’t start the game, but entered in the 3rd inning when Peraza had to leave because of injury.
Negatives
It wasn’t Dan Straily‘s night. Straily entered play 6-0 with a 1.98 ERA and 3.79 FIP in 50 innings in the second half. Tonight, he couldn’t make it out of the third inning, and allowed four home runs: 2.2 IP, 8 H, 7 ER, 1 BB, 3 K, 21.52 FIP.
Jose Peraza had to leave the game in the 3rd inning after getting hit in the face by a pickoff attempt.
More bad news on the injury front. Cody Reed had to exit his start in Louisville this evening because of back spasms.
Not so random thoughts……….
Batting 7th … Moth. https://t.co/eRwwIqWnI9
— Cut4 (@Cut4) August 30, 2016
Up Next:
Reds at Angels
Tuesday, 10:10 PM
TV: FOX Sports Ohio
Tim Adleman (3.68 ERA) vs Jered Weaver (5.31 ERA)
All stats used courtesy of Fangraphs, ESPN Stats & Info, and Baseball-Reference (including Baseball-Reference Play Index). All photos used courtesy of the Cincinnati Enquirer, and are used by permission.