| Final | R | H | E |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cincinnati Reds (70-80) |
3 | 6 | 2 |
| Arizona Dbacks (76-74) |
1 | 4 | 0 |
| W: Bauer (11-12) L: Gallen (3-6) SV: Iglesias (31) |
|||
| Statcast | Box Score | Game Thread | |||
Trevor Bauer was dominant for the Reds on Sunday afternoon, Eugenio Suarez went deep multiple times, and Raisel Iglesias took care of business at the end as Cincinnati took the final game and thus the series against Arizona.
The Offense
With the Dbacks taking a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the 3rd inning, the Reds took things into their own hands in the top of the 4th. Josh VanMeter cracked a solo home run to tie up the game at 1. Then Eugenio Suarez followed up with a solo homer of his own to give the Reds the lead. He wasn’t done for the day, either. In the top of the 6th inning he did it again, hitting a 456-foot home run way beyond the fence in left-center for his 47th home run of the season to give the Reds a 3-1 lead. That was all they would get on the day.
Eugenio Suarez was the only batter to reach base twice in the game, and he did so thrice. He crushed 2 home runs and he drew a walk. Phillip Ervin, Josh VanMeter, Aristides Aquino, and Trevor Bauer all had a hit in the game.
The Pitching
Trevor Bauer allowed just 1 run in the game as he put together his best start for the Reds. Arizona took a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the 3rd inning, but that was the lone run that Bauer gave up in 8.0 innings. He allowed just 4 hits on the day, walked 1 batter, and he struck out 9.
Raisel Iglesias came on for the 9th inning with the Reds holding onto a 3-1 lead. He made quick and easy work, racking up 2 strikeouts in a perfect inning of work.
Notes Worth Noting
Josh VanMeter’s home run went 66.42 VanMeter’s (393 feet).
Eugenio Saurez has 47 home runs. This is important in a lot of ways. That ties him with Andres Galarraga for the most home runs hit in a season by a Venezuelan born player. It also puts him tied for 3rd on the Reds single season all-time list with Ted Kluszewski. He will need 2 more to tie another season of Kluszewski’s and 5 more to match George Foster’s team record of 52. If he hits 2 more home runs he’ll also set the National League record for most home runs hit as a third baseman in a season. Oh, and he’s also currently tied with Pete Alonso for the most homers in Major League Baseball this season. The home run was also his 100th RBI of the season for those of you who like big, round numbers. And for those of you who like steaks (get it? Rib Eye Steak).
Aristides Aquino threw out Wilmer Flores by *checks notes* 3 nautical miles.
Punished from right field. ?#BornToBaseball pic.twitter.com/kl2W0ExpAB
— Cincinnati Reds (@Reds) September 15, 2019
Raisel Iglesias save was his 31st of the year, setting a new career high for the Reds closer.
Trevor Bauer now has 245 strikeouts on the season between Cleveland and Cincinnati. That’s tied with his former teammate Shane Bieber for 3rd most in Major League Baseball as I type this.
Up Next for the Cincinnati Reds
Cincinnati Reds vs Chicago Cubs
Monday September 16th, 8:05pm ET
Sonny Gray (10-7, 2.80 ERA) vs. Cole Hamels (7-7, 3.89 ERA)
When was the last time the Reds went into a season with 2 guys with legit 40 HR power? With Suarez and Aquino, that’s what the Reds would have. If they could add one more consistent bat, things would get interesting next year!
Aquino is hitting .163 with 1 home run in September. I wouldn’t include him in any expectation of consistency.
Right. The league has adjusted to Aquino. If the Reds are counting on him to be a major run producer next season, they will probably be sitting in 4th place with 70 wins on September 16, 2020.
Baseball has it’s ups and downs. Aquino’s in a down, but he’s a talented guy and not only on offense. Pitchers are adjusting to him and he has to adjust. Give him some time. Often the Reds don’t do that with young players to build their confidence.
Aquino is in the middle of a drought. We hope it’s a drought, anyway, rather than simply that he’s been figured out by opposing pitchers.
Agreed that this is the Bauer I expected to show up
Suarez is making 2019 the he did not swoon in September.
JVM can hit. Please play him at 2nd so he is comfortable on defense.
Good weekend to win 2 of 3 and get 2 great and one good (Castillo) starts. On to Chicago.
Cubs pitching 2 lefties so hopefully Bell’s right only lineup can score a few runs?
What makes you think JVM can hit? He’s slashing .243/.329/.427. I’m not criticizing your comment, I’m truly asking. With work and the Reds completely falling out of contention, I haven’t been following as closely lately. I know he’s been great at AAA this season, but has he looked better at the plate than the above numbers indicate?
The statheads love xwOBA, and JVM (.322) is above MLB avg (.318) on that measure. Only other Reds above avg. are Winker (.355), Dietrich (.352), Suarez (.347), Votto (.344) and Aquino (.338)
And if DeSclafani has found his equilibrium, like last night, that’s another possible positive for 2020. Questions are: whose in center, another starting pitcher is needed, possible upgrade at catcher, awakening the offense, and upgrading the bullpen.
Chris Welsh was talking last night about the adjustments DeSclafani made with DJs help. I’m betting that Bauer has been tweaking things since he arrived to get back to his 2018 form. I think Castillo, Gray, Bauer, and DeSclafani are going to be the talk of baseball in the first three months of the 2020 season.
I wish I had that optimism about the progress our hitting coach has made with the bats. Then again, Suarez is having his dreams season, so what do I know.
with Winker and Senzel shut down for the season I think this has let Bell get into a groove a little bit. this has lead to more consistency and stability in the line up instead of not knowing if these 2 would be ready to go or not on a seemingly daily basis.
to me VanMeter, Aquino, Ervin and maybe even O’Grady are proving that they can be everyday players and I think Bell is starting to trust them more.
VanMeter and Aquino have a combined OPS of .963 in September. VanMeter has one month this season with a batting average above .230. I don’t think we have enough everyday players to compete for the division title – hope the front office moves aggressively this offseason as those guys develop.
The really impressive thing about Suarez this season is he is doing all this despite getting hit on the hand twice, the same hand he broke last year. He bounced back after like two days the last time he got hit. He is one tough cookie and that is good because the league will probably keep pounding it inside as long as he is slugging like this. It would be tremendous if he wins the home run title and gives Foster a run for his money.
Good win. But to me the play of the game was Bauer sprinting over to first base, catching the throw and beating out the runner to get the out. Pure hustle and determination. I admit that I am not a big Bauer fan but I like to see that kind of play in the field. Love this quote I saw this morning from Anson Dorrance the UNC women’s soccer coach “What it comes down to is intense desire. To get this winning edge, you need to build an indomitable will. This means you must be relentless; you must never give up.” We need that mindset on the Reds.
Because he is a rookie, Van Meter gets punched out on balls outside of the zone. Same with Ervin and Aquino. It happens repeatedly. Bad umps and no respect. I do believe Van Meter can hit. Would you rather have Peraza? There is a lot of talk about adding a bat, but don’t forget about Winker. He just needs to confine his celebrations to a forearm bump and try to avoid the twisting butt bump (how do you think he hurt his back?) Once again Bell puts Van Meter out of position (1B) where he hasn’t learned the footwork. So for 2019, the starting pitching was great, relief pitching so-so, hitting weak and the managing probably cost us 12 games.