The Reds (37-36) hope to make it 2 consecutive wins tonight in the second game of their current 4 game set versus the Atlanta Braves (35-39) at GABP in Cincinnati. Game time is 7:10 Eastern.
Starting Pitchers
Right hander Vladimir Gutierrez gets the call for the Reds. The Braves will send left hander Drew Smyly to the mound to start the game.
Vladimir Gutiérrez
Gutierrez has compiled an ERA/FIP of 3.86/4.51 in 5 starts since replacing Jeff Hoffman (due to injury) in the Reds rotation making him a league average starter. He has gone at least 5 complete innings in each start and as deep as 7 full innings in one effort. Gutierrez has been stingy with the HR ball (0.96 HR/9) which is a very good thing because he has been a bit generous with walks (4.5 BB/9) enroute to a overall 1.32 WHIP. He strikes out slightly less than 1 hitter per inning on average.
Gutierrez uses his 93MPH fastball about half the time and mixes his curve (79 MPH) and Slider (83 MPH) about equally on the remainder of his pitches with an occasional 78 MPH change up also thrown into the mix. His fastball and slider rate slightly above MLB average. His other 2 pitches below MLB average.
Drew Smyly
Drew Smyly who makes his 13th start of the 2021 season for the Braves is back in an MLB rotation on a full time basis for the first time since 2016. With the Braves coming off a bullpen night on Thursday and Charlie Morton scratched as their Sunday starter, the Braves need big effort from Smyly tonight. Unfortunately for the Braves, Smyly has struggled to get beyond the 5th inning in most of his starts.
Smyly’s ERA/FIP of 5.11/5.73 is less than encouraging as are his HR/9 of 2+ and BB/9 of 3.36. Smyly’s right hand/ left hand batter splits for 2021 are worth noting. Left-handed hitters actually hit for a higher average and slugging rate versus Smyly but RH hitters have a better OBP. Apparently he has trouble throwing strikes to RH hitters who wait him out??
Smyly is a 4 seam fastball (53% at 93MPH)/ curveball (37% at 79MPH) pitcher who also mixes in a cut fastball/ flat slider at 88MPH to fill out his offerings. Only his 4 seamer rates as at least average MLB quality.
Tale of the tape:
| PITCHER | ERA | FIP | WHIP | HR/9 | BB% | K% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Vladimir Gutierrez | 3.86 | 4.51 | 1.32 | 0.96 | 11.5 | 18.9% |
| Drew Smyly | 5.11 | 5.73 | 1.35 | 2.19 | 8.6% | 20.2% |
Vladimir Gutierrez is off to a reasonably good beginning as an MLB starting pitcher. However if he is to emerge as a longer term starter versus being a bullpen man, he probably needs to knock several percentage points off his BB rate and add them to his K rate.
Bullpens
REDS
For once, the Reds bullpen report is relatively simple. Three guys each worked a full inning Thursday. Amir Garrett (8 pitches) should be reasonably unlimited tonight. Brad Brach (14 pitches) may be limited to a situation of getting an out 1 or 2 to end an inning. Tejay Antone (27 pitches) is almost certainly not available tonight. Everyone else is believed to be fully available.
BRAVES
Thursday was a bullpen night for the Braves. 5 guys threw 20+ pitches each and would be figure to be somewhere between limited and not available tonight. Closer Will Smith was NOT among those working Thursday. Keep an eye out for call ups and deck chair shuffling here.
Starting Lineups
| BRAVES | REDS |
| 1. Ronald Acuna Jr. (RF) 2. Freddie Freeman (1B) 3. Ozzie Albies (2B) 4. Austin Riley (3B) 5. Abraham Almonte (LF) 6. Dansby Swanson (SS) 7. William Contreras (C) 8. Guillermo Heredia (CF) 9. Drew Smyly (P) |
1. Jonathan India (2B) 2. Jesse Winker (LF) 3. Nick Castellanos (RF) 4. Tyler Stephenson (C) 5. Joey Votto (1B) 6. Eugenio Suarez (3B) 7. Aristides Aquino (CF) 8. Kyle Farmer (SS) 9. Vladimir Gutierrez (P) |
News and Notes
Have you heard or read about Reds pitching prospect Graham Ashcraft’s complete game shutout at AA Chattanooga? Doug Gray wrote about it and his current streak of shutout appearances over at RedsMinorLeagues.com on Thursday. Today the Lookouts shared some striking highlights:
Enjoy a strikeout compilation from Graham Ashcraft's Wednesday night complete game SHUTOUT courtesy of @MiLB. ??????????? pic.twitter.com/nIruJpaSNZ
— Chattanooga Lookouts (@ChattLookouts) June 25, 2021
Memo to Reds front office and ownership. If you are looking for a reason to invest in the Reds bullpen, here is a pretty good one. A little bit could go a long way:
SP ERA in the NL Central over the last 30 days:
Reds 2.89
Brewers 3.57
Cubs 4.23
Pirates 4.97
Cardinals 5.86— ???? ????y (@Nicholaspkirby) June 25, 2021
And the Reds are top 5 in MLB per game scoring. Might that be a another good reason to fix the bullpen?
Runs per game leaders:
1. Astros, 5.8
2. Dodgers, 5.1
3. Giants, 5.03
4. Reds, 5.01
5. Blue Jays, 5.0— Brian McTaggart (@brianmctaggart) June 25, 2021
An inexact update on Nick Senzel because that’s all David Bell has for us.
David Bell said it will be “some time after the All-Star break” until Nick Senzel returns.
The latest update is toward the end of July.
“There’s not an exact clear date."
— Charlie Goldsmith (@CharlieG__) June 25, 2021
Second verse, Mike Moustakas, the same as the first
David Bell says Mike Moustakas “is still dealing with some pain” and isn’t running.
“Maybe a similar timeline (to Senzel)."
— Charlie Goldsmith (@CharlieG__) June 25, 2021
NL CENTRAL STANDINGS
| W | L | PCT | GB | L10 | |
| Milwaukee | 42 | 33 | .560 | 0 | 4-6 |
| Chi Cubs | 42 | 33 | .560 | 0 | 4-6 |
| Cincinnati | 37 | 36 | .507 | 4 | 5-5 |
| St. Louis | 36 | 39 | .480 | 6 | 4-6 |
| Pittsburgh | 27 | 46 | .370 | 14 | 4-6 |
FINAL THOUGHT
The Reds appear to have caught the Braves at a good time due to their injury woes. Whatever it takes, the Reds need to cash in on this opportunity. GO REDS!
GAME TIME: 7:10 EDT
LISTEN: 700 WLW; MLB.com Gameday audio subscription
WATCH: Bally Sports Ohio
Data/Stats courtesy of Fangraphs and Baseball Reference
Lets score early and often and make it two in a row.
AA instead of Heineman? What’s gotten into Bell? That actually makes sense. Of course, the Reds still don’t have a SS and Suarez is, well, all or nothing with nothing leading by a wide margin. Oh well, let’s hope for some quick and brutal production.
The Lookouts announcer’s inflection and tone reminds me of Vin Scully. Thanks for adding that clip. Let’s score 10 and get a W!
Rockies 4-0 over Milwaukee! Brewers cannot hit. Yelich can’t throw any better then Shogo….maybe worse? Cubs have holes too. Their pen is pitching out of their mind, but I’ve never heard of any of their middle relievers? They’ll come back to reality and they might even repeat the White Sox when they were right in the race and sold the farm anyway. They have too many free agents and can’t pay them all.
This division is there for the Reds if the front office would help out a little?
This is a repost from a comment I made late after last night’s game! Even the MLB Network analysts on last night’s Reds/Braves pregame show last said the Reds are a dangerous team in the NL Central if they can get their bullpen straightened out!
That’s a big IF! The SP is doing its job according to Nick’s tweet above! Just need some improvement from the BP!
Go Reds! Again, score early and a lot!
Jim, nice summary, succinct and full of facts. Love it that Doug gives others a chance to write, it certainly enhances the coverage by bringing in additional viewpoints and writing styles.
I am going to have to look up succinct but many thanks to you (and Doug for the opportunity).
Basically, it means getting your point across while minimizing unnecessary words or complex sentences. It’s what keeps people who like to express ideas (like me) from people who know how to write (like you)! Time for baseball.
Powerful lineup tonight. Being a big fan of Aquino is what keeps me from going a little nuts as to why Naquin isn’t playing every day. Let’s win.?
As a side note, does anyone really think Senzel will be back this year? Maybe a few games at the most and even at that not close to 100%.
Probably but not in an effective way for the team. I don’t see much potential there like most others. A terrific athlete but not played in the right position, a little too aggressive when not needed to be and a body tendency that has not been respected. A sorry story, same with Lorenzen. Moose seems to want to join that club. They should all be traded.
I dont see any reason to believe he wont be back this year at 100% whatever that might mean. I think he’ll be on the bench more than he’s been to this point when he returns, unless injuries come up again.
I was under the impression it’s the same kind of injury Votto had back 2012. if so he won’t have his leg strength. Votto said at the end of that season he was swinging all upper body for the rest of that season after coming back.
Guiterrez is bulldog. When somebody gets on he buckles down and gets to work and strands the runner. Really like his competitiveness.
You can throw 93-94 if you add/subtract like Vlad did in that 1st inning. Love pitchers that change speeds like that.
For some reason he reminds me of El Duque. If he throws an eephus pitch then I’ll know.
India keeps on doing what he has been doing.
IT’S JUST A SHIFT, SADAK. IT’S NOT AN OVERSHIFT. NOR A PULL SHIFT. JUST A SHIFT.
He’s ridiculous. Votto CRUSHED it while Acuna strolls over 30 feet short of the track
Yep. And he’s at the ballpark, right?
The wind is coming in from right 12MPH, I heard the at-bats. They were crushed. Just went up into the wind and slowed them back down.
Adames 9th inning HR in Colorado to win the game last week and just hit a 2 run HR in the 9th to tie it at home vs Colorado. They were just down 4-0 in the 7th.
Their front office went out and got him and he might win the division for them. You have to make effort to fix your holes.
Was about to write the same thing.Guy was moved for 2 relievers cause they had the top prospect in baseball down in the minors ready to take over at short.Got to check on those things and you know he makes nothing nor will he for awhile.Adames is I think 25 years old.
You think the Reds could of got him for 2 of our relievers?
I’d be afraid if the Reds tried to deal with Tampa. They’re wizards and we’re the village idiot.
he would’ve cost a guy like Senzel as a return, or even maybe Senzel and Antone would be a fair comp to what the Brewers gave up. Not saying thats not worth it by any means, but youre gonna give up something you’d probably rather keep for Adames.
The betting line had 12 as the over. No confidence in either pitcher it seems. Reds need to get on smiley hard and force into the bullpen to set themselves up for success in the last 2
The Reds really need some baserunning/stealing instruction.
Aquino….no…. if you want to be on second do it the old-fashioned way. Touch it on your way around on a homerun. Wheels, he does not have.
No, he can run pretty well. You have to know about running on lefties though? Its like we have to give away atleast 1-2 outs every night on the bases. Not that Suarez or Farmer ever contribute offense anyway. He would’ve just got stranded on a different base.
Farmer has been serviceable lately. No power, but he’s not been hurting the lineup the past 2 weeks.
Hope so cause farmer is the shortstop till after All star break minimum
Cincinnati Reds getting their tootblan out of the way early tonight. They should put out a video on what not to do on the basepaths.
Not to mention they could’ve hit-n-ran with Castellanos in the 1st inning and maybe scored? If you can’t count on the NLs best hitter on a hit-n-run then who can you hit-n-run with?
I have always wondered if they do talk to these guys about mistakes on the bases.Obviously it isn’t working.So do you set major league guys when they perform like T ballers?Now it may not have made any difference with AA but we do some real dumb stuff on the bases.
I would hope the coaching staff was talking to the players about the poor baserunning lately, but I also wonder if they’ve contributed to it as well. I’m all for aggressive baserunning as I’m sure the coaching staff also is, but this team has not shown a propensity for it recently.
Suarez never even made contact and punched out and Farmer did foul one off before he punched out and AA got picked off after singling.Not much we can do about the first two guys right now so we play on and hope for better things.
Rockies relief corps is emulating the Reds’ bullpen! Blew a 4-0 lead in the 7th inning! Drat!
Milwaukee is going to win the division. They got Wong back and I’m sure they’ll get another hitter or pitching depth. The Reds are in wait-n-see mode and thats not going to work with our pen and our holes at 3B/SS.
Got to think you right Indy.Just too many holes each game to patch.Just bound to fall in to one or two every game.I am not down so much on Suarez and Farmer because they are trying but more so as you said we are in a wait and see mode.I have seen enough to know this will just not work on a consistent basis.
Wink 16 for last 63 (.254) with 0 Hrs. Swing looks a little long. Maybe a few more days off here and there?
Has been hitting some line shots though. If 3 of those falls in he is over 300. The home runs have dried up though. Hasnt hit one since the 3 homer day maybe?
Again, Reds are making an opposing pitcher with an ERA near 5 look like Cy Young!
Still just one time through the order, give them time.
Schwarber another Hr))))))) What a heater!
That was a GOOD play Suarez
Wow! I didn’t think he had that in him? Tracking the big bounce down the line and then the throw from his knees! Excellent play!
I don’t really consider the Aquino pickoff a Tootblan. He has the speed, and just went on the first move…got caught. certainly it looks bad, but it’s worth the risk to get to 2nd with the bottom of the lineup coming up. IMO
I’d tend to agree, could’ve been a hit-and-run as well and we would never know.
Some times when facing a lefty, whether it’s a sign or just on your own, you make up your mind to go on first move. That’s what it looked like to me and Larkin said the same thing on the broadcast. Who knows? So I agree with you “VaRedsFan”. He almost made it anyway.
GG play from Geno, big spot for it too
Heckuva play by Geno, didn’t think he had enough on the throw, but he did, saved a run, maybe 2.
Playing infield in already? Desperate looking move by the braves.
The wind is causing a lot of problems today it seems. Reds players not having trouble barrelling up the ball, it just continually gets hung up in the air.
Is “the wind” David Bell’s new nickname? JK couldn’t help myself
it’s not like Red’s batters are only chipping the ball. They are seeing it. I think if there was no wind there would be about 5 or 6 HR combined.
Per baseball savant, the ball Votto did not hit far enough to be a sac fly did have a decent exist velocity. However, the launch angle was 54 degrees and it travelled only 247’. The ball was not crushed. The issue was not the wind. Votto got under it and basically hit a real MLB outfield pop up which back in the day we called a can of corn.
Votto with 2 nice snags tonight after his miss yesterday
Freeman fastball down the middle(( Why? Vlad was ahead 1-2. Lucky its not 2-0
Vladimir Gutierrez starting to struggle. After the good start by tony it is interesting to see how Vlad will follow up this. PC into the 70s in the 5th
Wind works both ways, you could see Vlad knew that that was gone without the wind. With it F8.
Vlad has thrown 5 innings with 1 run scored. He faced the hard hitters last inning for the 3rd time. 6th inning should be all down hill for him.
Spoke too soon, Swanson gets his 2nd hit, via the HR
Castellanos 2b
Stephenson sac fly to 3b
Votto and suarez cant drive him in
Votto can’t hit lefties
Suarez/Farmer can’t hit anyone
Wink is degraded vs lhp & Naquin sits
Stephenson is a slight upgrade over TB, but he doesn’t have much power yet
I never feel good against lefties. Newcomb shut them down last night.
Nasty curve!
This team cant win if votto is barely above replacement level and Suarez hits .170 and is the worst every day player in baseball
Criticize castellini and Krall all you want but if your top 2 players who make $40 million combine for a WAR of Zero- no team can win
Young guys 29 and under getting it done
Jackie Bradley is worse then Geno))) Worst infielder maybe or 2nd worst overall
Braves 2 Reds 0 Wind 200 Winker Robbed by mother nature
Jammed on a 3-0 pitch? Nick is killing it, but I’m not into swinging 3-0 even half as much as the Reds do it.
He barrelled it, he was just under it though. I greenlight him there 200 out of 100 times.
Rookies rule!
Stephenson the first Red to remember the thing called a line drive that negates the wind. Good AB
Man, the kids are alright.
Can JV tie the game? Not optimistic. But here’s hoping. Though Atl may walk him to get to Suarez. Can probably strike him out easily.
And the answer is once again – NO. If JV is going to keep playing, they need a 1B platoon with someone that can hit lefties.
.189 vs lefties. Lose this one and its back to .500 and 5 back. I can’t believe Milw looked so flat all day and then came back from 4-0 in the 7th.
Adames was a huge huge pickup for them. They’ll go get a solid hitting OF to replace Jackie Bradley and the NL Central will be put away.
Moose is injured, but will be back eventually. Only other guy I can think of is Stephensen, but then it’d just be TB vs a lefty instead (you could make the argument thats a better defensive alignment). That wasn’t bad contact on Vottos part there, and he wouldve had an RBI earlier if it wasn’t Acuna in RF.
2020, we heard the contact arguments on Suarez, Votto, et al, BABIP, blah, blah, since last year. At some point, folks have to quit clinging to “analytics” and actually focus on results. Votto and Suarez, in particular, aren’t delivering.
This isn’t even using analytics – the Reds dont have guys to replace them that are better. We can talk all day about how they’re not playing up to their contracts, but simple fact is they’re the best options we have. They aren’t even the biggest problem on the team.
Considering the Reds haven’t explored better options, via trade or call ups, allows you that counter. But the fact remains that neither Bell nor the FO are trying anything to improve the team. Calling up Heineman, for example, instead of Lopez, illustrates the problem. Suarez, Votto, and Farmer, all three only occasionally contributing, really puts the Reds in a hole. Add in the questionable bullpen, lousy base running, etc. and the team will be lucky to finish higher than 4th.
I mean, everything can be glass half empty if you look at it that way, which I guess is your choice. But if 1B isnt a hole and you’re paying that guy money you can’t take back, I really dont understand why they’d be looking for a replacement, especially one they’d have to use prospect capital for.
Clearly the Reds dont view Lopez as a SS, and thusly dont see the need to hurt their depth at that position for a marginal upgrade to the ML team, if he’s an upgrade at all. Even if your guy got a call-up, I doubt he’d play much anyway.
Wouldn’t call Lopez up to play SS. Call him up for 2nd, shift India to 3rd. Moose isn’t back soon and I wonder if Senzel will be back at all this year. Successful teams adjust. The Reds have not. Farmer, Heineman, Freeman, et. al. aren’t adjustments. They are warm bodies wasting roster slots.
And JV kills the rally. He’s just not the player he once was. And it’s sad to see him continuing to pretend that he’s going to turn it around.
hm, I’m not moving India off 2B, he’s been our only good up-the-middle defender this year. I’m sure Lopez is a downgrade defensively. Anything involving moving India while he’s having success is a non-starter for me.
People seem to think Senzel is done this year and I have no idea why y’all think that.
What adjustments are better teams making? I’m confused by that comment, seems extremely assumptive. I’m sure whichever teams youre referring to have higher payrolls or better farms to pull from.
Nearly every team has guys like heineman, freeman, etc on their 40 or 26
Senzel is fragile. He’ll probably injure himself in rehab – kind of like Moose.
lol, all right. Clearly he’s “probably” going to re-injure himself.
I believe before the last game or two that Votto had a streak of 14 RBI in the last 14 games.
Young guys doing it again.Its just so much fun to watch guys 24 and 25 play the game.
I don’t like stealing 3rd with 2 outs, so you batter make it, which India did. Stephenson delivers the key knock. Maybe it injected some life into the stadium.
The future indeed looks bright based on the performance of the young Reds! As for this year just gotta stay close to the Brewers & Cubs! Reds have already played 40 road games! Plus, the Reds schedule is very favorable the last 5 weeks of the 2021 season!
Lets hold them right here and see what happens the rest of the way.Winnable game and we have had our chances.Keep swinging and they will fall in.
“Lets hold them right here”? I’m guessing you typed that before our pen came in)))
Lopez with 2 more hits tonight. A switch hitter that would bring way more to the team than Freeman.
The internal fixes for the Reds positional player issues are all in-house or on the injured list. The organization does need to go find bullpen pieces. The Art Warrens are the minor league options and are not cutting it.
I gotta respectfully disagree. They don’t believe Barrero is ready or they would’ve moved him to AAA by now. Suarez is a terrible SS and would just carry that to the plate too. Votto can’t hit lefties, but he’ll be in there every day come hell or high water. Same with Suarez and Farmer evidently. That puts alot of pressure on everyone else.
I could see them swapping out Moose for Suarez at 3B, but only after Suarez butchers SS for a month and we’re out of it anyway
Barrero may be more long term but what about this other guy in Triple A, that seems to be destroying the baseball?
Lopez is only a 2B from what I’ve read. Personally if they can play Suarez at SS then please explain why the vastly superior athlete India can’t play SS? He’s got range and a big arm!
well lets give it a few more weeks and see if Lopez forces the issue
@Indy I don’t get that either. India or Senzel would have seemed to be a better fit at the beginning of the season for SS than Suarez. Everything we’ve seen since only solidified that observation. I have never seen Lopez play SS, and I know his SS experience is very little, but I’d bet he’d do a better job at SS than Suarez to.
To me there are LESS players (infielders) that could play SS worse than Suarez than there are who could play it better….so don’t get me started on that again. 🙂
It’s always perplexing when I look at the in-game box score and see the Reds have only one (1) on 6 hits! Meanwhile, the Braves have 3 runs with the same number of hits! And, yes, I know they have 2 solo HRs!
Time for the bats to come alive! One (1) run an inning will get it done!
That will do Suarez.
That’s one (1) run! Need 2 more!
Their manager pulling a Bell. Why take out Smyly? He was rolling! Thank you!
Once again Luke Jackson gives up a run by the homer route. He is Atlanta’s Hembree.
I wish Bell had stuck with AA and saved Naquin for the pitcher slot. The remaining choices are much weaker.
Plus I like AA batting period, He doesn’t have bad splits
Joey Votto has an OBP of .330 in late June
Suarez is hitting .177 with a solo HR once as week.
I dont know what to think of this “Rider” group within the Reds. Half of me expects to wake up to an MLBTR headline stating ” 11 Cincinnati Reds arrested in electric scooter gang activity”
Braves have saved a few runs today with their defense
Castellanos starting to find it again
Where would this team be without India snd Tyler Stephenson?
The Winker Rob was huge for Atlanta. It would be tied right now.
Joey Votto is becoming a 39 yo Pete Rose. Roll over to 2nd base for the 4-6-3 DP. Pop up with 1 out and the runner on 3b.
He’s hitting .240 with a .330 obp
So, he’s a league average hitter at the moment. Votto starts slow EVERY year. I can bear with him, just like he bore with the Reds all those years.
Everyone apparently would rather Heineman was playing first, or we had a back-up catcher’s offense instead if we move Stephensen and waste his development as a catcher.
Yes, it doesn’t get much better than Heineman. Has he EVER taken a pitch?
Votto is still performing credibly vs RHP (1o8 AB)
.269/.363/.472 .835
Not so much vs LHP (5o AB)
.200/.273/.360 .633
RLN doesn’t do numbers, only the eye-test. And only when he fails.
Stephenson needs to start playing a lot of first base. Votto is really hurting this team.
I agree that Votto is hurting this team, Has for the past 3 years. Nobody in the organization seams to see it in plain sight. He is the Absolute Worst player to come to bat with runners on base when we need a run!!! He can pad his #’s against weaker pitchers and get hits when the score is high. The best thing the Reds can do with Votto is give him a plaque and send him home and eat the contract.
Stephenson is not an answer at 1B. He doesn’t wear out RHP and so far hasn’t demonstrated much power much at all, particularly vs RHP. So far he’s more of a high OBP and bat control hitter. You’d really prefer a strong LH power bat at first base and Votto can still (somewhat) provide that vs RHP.
Against LHP where Stephenson most succeeds hitting is also when he catches, which puts Barnhart’s LH (weak vs LHP) bat on the bench. If you’re platooning Votto, it needs to be with a RH power hitter vs LHP … lefty Barnhart is not that and neither is Stephenson. Stephenson at 1B this season has actually only hit .154 with a double and 5 singles ‘slugging’ .179 … this is why Heineman gets his ABs, he’s a RH power bat for matching against LHP
Time for a Heineman special
Man, I thought he was sent down. Sa-wing batter, sa-wing
ok Farmer
Heineman? Atlanta is laughing their way to victory
And he struck out. Wow, I’m shocked.
Reds beat by a combination of wind and good play from the Braves. No team is going 162 and 0 and sometimes you have to expect to lose some games. Get them tomorrow
+1
So Earth Wind and Fire beat the Reds tonite?
Yes, and judging by their placement on the billboard top 100 it is the longest stretch between victories
Good game, just needed a couple of things to break their way.
Yes. Atlanta defense. Reds hit a ton of balls hard, but came up empty.
Would rather have Tucker take some cuts instead of Heinemen
I wonder if Tucker went back to switch hitting if Bell would play him every day? He still hits lefties this year twice as well as Heineman. So does Freeman for that matter.
TB vs LHP (22 AB) = .136/.167/.318
Listening to how much refinement he did improving his batting by concentrating on only his natural LH side, i very much doubt he’d risk that going back to switch hitting. As a catcher, you need so many days off too, and the increasd batting acumen he gets from this approach is gonna make him lots of money
TB vs RHP (151 AB) = .285/ .376/.437
Keep bringing up Heineman Reds front
Office – just a masterful move . Refuse to believe there isn’t anyone better than this dude to bring up . Couldn’t hit the baseball in the Atlantic Ocean if it was on a tee and he was standing on the shoreline .
They were saying on the broadcast how David Bell thinks so much that Heineman can hit LH pitching. David Bell has a lot to do with player moves I’m afraid.
Great game. Well played by both teams. Nasty slider to face when coming off the bench cold and not having played in a while. Go get em tomorrow.
I have been down on the relief staff all season. However, when all starters return and with the small sample we have seen from the current staff /a relief staff of Hoff, Antone, Broch, Warren Santillan, Osich, Hendrix, Hembree, Sims does not sound horrible and could use a solid closer. I would like to see a true shortstop with Framer being the utility infielder that fills in and a solid choice to alternate with Votto at first he is under contract until he is something like 105.