In a game that saw both teams struggle to find much offense it was the Chicago Cubs that came out ahead in a 2-1 win over the Cincinnati Reds on Saturday afternoon at Wrigley. The loss dropped Cincinnati to 60-98 as they make a run at the franchise record of 101 losses.
| Final | R | H | E |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cincinnati Reds (60-98) |
1 | 4 | 0 |
| Chicago Cubs (72-86) |
2 | 3 | 1 |
| W: Miley (2-2) L: Law (2-3) SV: Hughes (8) |
|||
| Statcast | Box Score | Game Thread | |||
The Offense
Cincinnati would get a hit in each of the first two innings, but both times they couldn’t capitalize on their opportunity. In the 3rd inning Kyle Farmer came through with a 2-out RBI single that scored Spencer Steer from second base after his double. That tied the game up at 1-1. That was the last baserunner that Cincinnati would have until the 9th inning when Jake Fraley came off of the bench to pinch hit and drew a 2-out walk to put the tying run on base. That’s when the managers got into a duel as David Bell called on TJ Friedl to pinch hit before David Ross called on left-handed reliever Brandon Hughes to come out of the bullpen, resulting in Bell then calling on Alejo Lopez to replace Friedl at the plate. Lopez would strike out on three pitches to end the game, securing the 98th loss of the season for the the Reds.
The Pitching
Walks will haunt, or so the story goes. In the second inning that’s exactly what happened. After a 2-out walk to David Bote, Nick Lodolo gave up a triple to Nelson Velasquez that gave the Cubs a 1-0 lead. He would walk the next two batters to load the bases, but he got out of that jam with a fly out to right field. The rookie left-hander gave up just one hit the rest of his outing as he threw 5.0 innings on the day and left the game with it tied up at 1-1.
Derek Law came out of the bullpen to relieve Lodolo and tossed a perfect 6th inning to keep the game tied. Things didn’t go as smoothly the next inning as Seiya Suzuki hit a 2-out go-ahead solo home run. That would be the final pitch for Law as Buck Farmer came on to relieve him with two outs. Farmer finished the game out, tossing 1.1 perfect innings, keeping the score at 2-1 after the 8th inning and giving the Cincinnati offense a shot to score a run or more and keep the game going. It wasn’t in the cards as the Reds couldn’t get the job done.
Notes Worth Noting
Nick Lodolo finishes his rookie season with a 4-7 record to go along with a 3.66 ERA, 39 walks, and 131 strikeouts in 103.1 innings spread out over 19 starts.
Reds have scored 17 runs over their last 9 games. In that span, they've scored 1 run 4x, 2 runs 2x, and 3 runs 3x. They are 1-8.
— Joel Luckhaupt (@jluckhaupt) October 1, 2022
Up Next for the Cincinnati Reds
Cincinnati Reds vs Chicago Cubs
Sunday October 2nd, 2:20pm ET
Chase Anderson (2-3, 4.70 ERA) vs Marcus Stroman (5-7, 3.66 ERA)
Finishing the season as we started. Very bad. The odds are looking good for 100+ losses most likely 102. When thinking about the Reds it’s hard to be in a good mood isn’t it? 🙂 At least Big Bob and Son are making more money. We should be happy for them right? After all, we have the hope that they will find their conscience and start trying to win if they don’t want to sell the team…..hahaha
Keeping an eye on Twitter for the game outcome on a secondary screen while I watched OSU football, I saw a Bally clip of Bell headlined that Bell said that walks were the difference in the game.
It seems to me it was more about who got a hit and who struck out following a 2 out walk was the difference.
Yep. Not only that, he is correct about walks hurting of course but scoring only one run generally doesn’t win a game. Some teams can play the three outcome game and win but others, like the Reds cannot. That’s what I mean about a manager “teaching” his team how to win and getting the most out of the talent that he has. With this team that’s a very hard thing to do and Bell obviously just doesn’t have it in him. I don’t call it “old school or new school”. I call it “win school”. At least try for two perhaps three runs per game consistently no matter which “school” you need to use. At least give your team a chance. A manager has to adjust just as hitters/pitchers have to adjust. No I’m not saying it’s all Bell’s fault but he is responsible for making sure the team practices and plays this way when needed.
The level off talent not name starting pitching on the Reds team is below average. It’s not a surprise that they can’t hit to save their live”
Right now, Lodolo seems like the odds on favorite for the opening day pitcher. Greene, Ashcraft, an acquisition or two could change that. All depends on the off season moves.
Honestly is there anyone on this team who would be in the starting 9 for the Dodgers, Yanks, Mets, Astros, Braves, or Cards?
Only Greene and Lodolo and Diaz would even make the 25 man roster of the teams mentioned above.
So really not sure anyone can blame the managers.
A poor assortment of players being led by a poor manager?
Fair enough for me.
That is no reason to keep Bell. More than one thing can be true at the same time.
The numbers prove Bell stinks as a MLB manager.
Start the season 3 and 19, end it even worse I guess. When you are bullet proof and even avid fans still want to see you fill out the lineup card, I guess winning doesn’t matter that much in Cincinnati.
3-22 but who’s counting. 🙂
I don’t know whether Bell is a bad manager or a good manager or something in between. The fact that he makes lineup and strategic decisions with which some of us disagree is inconsequential, as is his won-lost record as a manager without detailed information about the quality of the players available to him. Managers generally acclaimed as good by us have had horrendous seasons when they were saddled with poor rosters , and not only is that relevant, it’s very nearly conclusive: no manager can win with a bad roster.
Haven’t posted on here in a long time. I am still a Reds fan, but honestly, this season was a disgrace. Last time I checked, 37 pitchers had made at least one appearance. If Farmer is our best player, that’s a problem. How low does it go? I’ll be following to see if they tie, or even do worse than the ’82 team (61-101). Ugly. Ugly. Ugly.
Go Pirates!
Only 1/2 game ahead. 🙂
Chris Welch said, after Farmer drove in our only, run: what a gamer. He’s been batting 3rd all season. Ummmm….no, that’s not true. Pham batted 3rd until he was traded and Bell would continue to bat him 3rd if he was still on the team.
I think the triple hurt more than the walks. There was a walk before the triple and he scored, to be sure, but the next two walks following the triple did not score. The triple was the big blow, second only to the home run. It doesn’t matter how the baserunner got on first, the triple did the damage.
This team is at the bottom.
Good 3 potential SP
Nice closer
Good catcher who cant stay healthy
ROY with sophomore slump
Fraley hits righties well.
Steer maybe. Friedl 4th OF’
Then nothing.
This team is galaxies away from winning in 2023. (2) SP a CF and a hitting OF and a SS and a bullpen minimum needed to be competitive.
Reds going to tank again in 2023
Despite what Phil C says publicly on the record, I think he is just milking the cow for all it will deliver until the fullness of time sets him up to sell the team, or at least the managing partner super share.
I wonder if anyone has told him yet that “Teams receiving revenue sharing cannot be selected in the lottery more than two years in a row”? I guess that means a team would go where its “natural position” would fit in after the lottery for slots 1-6, i.e. worst overall record would pick 7th if this rule applied to them.
https://www.tankathon.com/mlb
Scroll to the bottom of the page for the basic rules.
The team could look very different next year with Stephenson and a major league backup catcher, a semi-productive Votto, a full year of Steer and the F-guys, a healthier India, another good rookie or two on the major league roster, and a quality free agent signing or two. However, the fact that Bell will probably be returning is just disgusting. Bringing back a manager with this kind of record is ownership saying “this is the outcome we expected, and we didn’t expect any of the hitters to improve at all.” No matter who’s on the roster, players in what is supposed to be their prime shouldn’t be regressing the way some of these guys have been regressing. Young players are supposed to get better, not worse. Bell, at best, isn’t doing a great deal of harm to this team, but there’s no way I’ll ever believe he actually helps. The roster may be bad, but I could be a lot more optimistic if I knew the team would be under new management. Unfortunately, this organization seems to have goals other than winning, so I assume his job is safe.
Fair players will lose to good players. Good players will lose to great players. We have been duped into comparing our players to our players. Look at our roster. Our best is average against the league and we won’t compete in the near future even if all are healthy.
Tim, so true. Also, fans of good teams don’t sit around and discuss players like Aristides Aquino or Matt Reynolds. Players like that would not warrant a roster spot for a good team, much less be a topic of discussion.
I don’t know why people think this Front office is going to spend money this off season. It’s just not going to happen. This team needs way to many players to contend next year and the front office isn’t spending money on that. Building through the system is what they said they were going to do. So buckle up and get ready for a couple more years of this.
JB,
You are spot on. Personally, I don’t think the Castellinis will ever spend money again, at least in terms of Free agents and multi-year contracts.
I am perplexed why people, in this group, believe there is a “plan” to win. Neither the Castellinis or Nick Krall have never mentioned such a plan.
The only plan Nick Krall has mentioned is the plan to “Align payroll with resources”. There has
never been any mention of building a competitive team that I am aware of.
Some here are very eager to give Bob Castellini the benefit of the doubt. I am not sure why.
If you look at the front office’s actions for the past two seasons, the “plan” seems clear. Trade anyone when they become too expensive ($5,000,000 seems to be the tipping point). Sign free agents that no other team wants, to single year contracts. With any luck they get off to a good start and the Reds can trade them in July. When your young players (e.g. Winker, Castillo and Mahle) start to earn more than league minimum trade them to a team that is trying to win.
The Reds have discovered they don’t need to be concerned with attendance at GABP. They will profit from TV contracts and revenue sharing.
I do believe when Bob Castellini crosses the rainbow bridge his son with sell the team. Until then, we will have more seasons like 2022.
“Some here are very eager to give Bob Castellini the benefit of the doubt. I am not sure why.”
I don’t think you’ll find too many here doing this.
We may differ on and discuss certain players, the manager, or even Krall. But frustration over ownership is the one thing that brings us all together.
🙂
not weighing in on whether it’s a good plan, since that won’t be known for a few years, but i don’t have to squint at all to see a plan: trade veteran players for well-regarded prospects and hope enough of them realize their promise to form a competitive team.
If you read the comments over the pst couple of seasons, there is every bit as much criticism, if not more, for not reading players soon enough than there is for reading them too soon. Maybe some of the commenters should loan their crystal ball to Krall and company so they can make the moves at exactly the right time and everybody will be happy.
Referring to an earlier comment, I don’t consider Stephenson injury prone. He had a concussion that looks to me as if it were an intentional blow, and he had two freak injuries. Senzel is injury prone but Stevenson had, for him, an unusual year. Time will tell.
I don’t see India as having had a sophomore slump. He, too, was bagged by injuries. His year was credible offensively, but hampered by injuries.
Injuries are my biggest concern with this team. There are a lot of areas in which it is great to be the major league leader but games lost to injury causing IL designation is not one of them. If bulk exceeds flexibility, injuries are the usual result.
Not true at Wkuchad, people here naively believe the Reds are going to spend money after the Votto and Moustakas contracts come off the books. They believe players like India and Stephenson are going to be signed to extensions, even though the clear pattern is to deal young players when they became expensive (Winker, Mahle, Castillo)
When people “squint” to see a plan they see a plan they want to see. If they took a step back, and look at what ownership has done the past two seasons, they will see the real plan.
Some here are just fooling themselves.
the plan may well include moving players as they become expensive and adding to the store of prospects; more or less the tampa bay model. we’ll have to wait and see. is that worse than hanging on to guys for too long and filling out the roster with players from the waiver wire and lower-tier free agents? it seems unlikely that ownership will seriously increase spending, so which path looks more likely to succeed?
I want to clarify my last comment when I mentioned hitting I wasn’t taking about Stephenson and India. The obviously talented hitters.
That should have read “not trading players” rather than not reading players. I’l using Jim’s ‘it’s too early in the morning excuse’!
Just read (late) that Castillo was extended by Mariners for 5 years at $20+M/yr. Well, we certainly weren’t going to give him that so I guess we got about as good a deal for him as we could. Hope we get some good results. In the meantime, congrats to Castillo, Suarez, and Winker for getting to the playoffs. I’ll be cheering for them.
Play the youngsters!. Well, this is what you get. Hope there is plenty of upside yet to come or we really are in some deep kimchi. Kudos to Farmer for plugging away and providing some kind of example for the kids.
Really wondering whether Barrero or Steer or Aquino start the season next year with Reds? One part of me says no but the other part says who else do they have behind them? Encarnacion Strand, Marte, Santana, or EDLC come to mind but are any really ready? Hard to have any optimism to next year because it looks like we will field the same team with perhaps one or two scrap heap free agents.
i agree to the lack of optimism for 2023. My guess is that they give Barrero until the all-star break to see how he plays. I think they will be watching edlc and Marte to see if they will be ready to play ss if Barrero falters badly. They may release Farmer, as his salary will be 4 million or so. I guess that they will bring in some dirt-cheap veterans to fill in the gaps. I can only hope that they spend some of the money they will have at the end of 2023. with votto and goose off the books they will have 40 million or so. I hope that they spend 20 million on improving the team and put the other 20 million in their pockets. That’s the best that I can hope for.
i