After a brutal month of April, the Colorado Rockies (18-24) continued their winning ways in May with a 9-8 victory over the Reds (18-23) Monday night. The Rockies are now 9-4 this month, after going 9-20 in March/April. Reds pitchers will try to overcome the challenges of Coors Field again tonight, this time with a rookie pitcher on the mound. First pitch is at 8:40 pm EDT.
Lineups
Cincinnati Reds
|
Colorado Rockies |
| 2B Jonathan India | DH Charlie Blackmon |
| SS Matt McLain | LF Jurickson Profar |
| LF Jake Fraley | C Elias Diaz |
| 1B Spencer Steer | RF Randal Grichuk |
| DH Tyler Stephenson | 3B Mike Moustakas |
| 3B Nick Senzel | 1B Michael Toglia |
| RF Wil Myers | CF Brenton Doyle |
| CF Stuart Fairchild | 2B Alan Trejo |
| C Curt Casali | SS Ezequiel Tovar |
Starting Pitchers
| Pitcher | IP | ERA | WHIP | BB | K |
| Brandon Williamson* | 34.0 | 6.62 | 1.88 | 20 | 27 |
| Chase Anderson** | 23.0 | 4.30 | 1.57 | 13 | 19 |
| Links: Brandon Williamson’s Stats | Chase Anderson’s Stats |
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*Williamson’s stats are from Triple-A.
**Anderson’s stats are from Triple-A Louisville before the Reds traded him to Tampa Bay.
Brandon Williamson
Twenty-five year old Brandon Williamson will make his MLB debut tonight for the Reds. He gets a tough assignment in his first start, and as a pitcher who has walked 20 batters and allowed 25 earned runs in 34 innings at Triple-A this season, it very well could get ugly for the lefty in what is probably the toughest major league ballpark to pitch in.
One of Williamson’s biggest struggles has been his lack of command. Even when he has a fairly decent start such as his most recent start at Louisville where he allowed only one run in 5.2 innings, he still walked three and struck out only four batters.
For a more in-depth look at Williamson, I recommend checking out the article from earlier today over at redsminorleagues.com.
Splits
| Split | PA | H | 2B | 3B | HR | BB% | K% | AVG | OBP | SLG |
| RHH | 120 | 32 | 7 | 0 | 7 | 14% | 18% | .320 | .425 | .600 |
| LHH | 45 | 12 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 7% | 13% | .286 | .333 | .381 |
Pitch Usage
| 4-Seam | Cutter | Curve | Slider | Change | |
| Velo | 91.9 | 87.1 | 73.9 | 81.6 | 84.3 |
| Usage | 53.1% | 2.5% | 13.5% | 19.8% | 11.0% |
Chase Anderson
Thirty-five year old Chase Anderson has had quite the journey over the last couple of months. He signed a minor league deal with the Reds before spring training and pitched at Triple-A Louisville for a month. The Reds traded him to the Tampa Bay Rays for cash on May 3. He pitched twice for the Rays, allowing only two hits and one walk while striking out two in five innings. The Rays designated Anderson for assignment on May 12; the Rockies claimed him and put him in the rotation for tonight.
You know what all of this means, right? One of two things is going to happen: either it will be a revenge game for Anderson against his former club (albeit a very short time), or Reds hitters will know his pitches well and will hit him like crazy.
Splits (from 2022)
| Split | PA | H | 2B | 3B | HR | BB% | K% | AVG | OBP | SLG |
| RHH | 55 | 10 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 12.7% | 21.8% | .222 | .346 | .378 |
| LHH | 48 | 7 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 16.7% | 22.9% | .184 | .333 | .342 |
Pitch Usage (from 2022)
| 4-Seam | 2-Seam | Cutter | Curve | Slider | Change | |
| Velo | 92.1 | 92.2 | 90.1 | 77.9 | 83.6 | 82.9 |
| Usage | 30.0% | 9.3% | 16.4% | 7.9% | 7.9% | 28.4% |
Details:
- Time: 8:40 pm EDT
- Place: Coors Field, Denver, CO
- Weather: 67 degrees, mostly cloudy and a slight chance of thunderstorms
- TV: Bally Sports Ohio
- Radio: 700 WLW
News and Notes
The Reds had to make a corresponding roster move to call up Brandon Williamson.
Which Reds prospects are rising and which Reds prospects are falling?
Ashley gets to do the write up two games in a row. Congratulations. Good job. 🙂
Last night, Ramos was 2-4 with a walk, double, SB, and two runs scores. He’s hitting over .300 on the road (OBP over .400). So of course Myers plays and Ramos sits.
Maybe Myers will have a great night. I hope he does. But if you’re ever going to use Ramos in a starting lineup, this would have been the day for it. Once again, Bell seems to be driven by something other than what is actually happening in real-world baseball games.
J- man I just don’t see Myers doing anything until he moves closer to the plate. They are just pounding him outside. The one pitch he takes last night was basically down the middle. Ramos she be playing over Myers and Fairchild. Fairchild isn’t hitting either.
If anyone looks lost it’s Myers.
It’s weird when guys consistently make outs in the same pathetic way, day after day, week after week, month after month, but refuse to make any adjustments. I’ll never understand the mentality that things will just magically get better because “this used to work for me.” A lot of great hitters (like Votto) will make adjustments constantly, but some guys won’t do it until they’re out of baseball.
Myers is making about $7.5m. He plays unless injured. It’s the Reds’ rule. Personally, I’ll take Fairchild starting over Ramos any day of the week. Ramos hit well his first 6 games and nothing since. The Reds were better off with Aquino. Though Aquino was more productive than Myers as well.
Nothing since? He’s 4 for his last 11 with a walk, double, SB, RBI, and 2 runs. You’re focusing on his slump and not what he’s actually been doing on the field lately. He should be playing now, when he’s actually hitting. He’s been putting the ball in play, which is exactly what you want guys to do in Denver.
Went to bed last night with the score tied 6-6. Of course, disappointed to check this morning and see the Reds lost 9-8. Reviewed the box score and the play-by-play results. The only major items that stood out was another sub-par start by Greene, bullpen struggles and 8 men LOB. This loss was the 11th one (1) run loss this season. Again, if the Reds could have found a way to win half of those games they would be much closer to the top of the NL Central.
In any event, Williamson will need a lot of run support as there are rarely any low scoring games at Coors Field.
Let’s start a new winning streak with a win tonight!
Pig Kicking time!!!
Seriously, let’s hope we see the Chase Anderson we all knew. Nothing against him personally … but we really need the win tonight. Start the Rocket Launch!
This is the best situation for williamson, hopefully he gets out to a great start, and the reds get that Coors field support
Looks like DLC and CES might be a little jealous of their buddy Matt. They both got two hits again tonight. They want to play with the big boys too. 🙂
Ladies and Gentlemen … Cy Anderson!
😛
Meyers is 5-15 with a HR off of Anderson…so maybe he runs into one
Well, that was a weak start for the Reds offense! Then perennial Reds Killer Blackmon leads off the bottom of the 1st with a single!
Blackmon is a good hitter. He flirted with .400 for maybe 1/3 of the season a few years ago.
nice error-saving pick by Steer on the DP
Alright, good so far
Lifetime ERA of 0.00.
BW can at least say it for 1 inning.
Good start foe Williamson! Now let’s score some runs for him!
“for” NOT “foe” Fat finger syndrome!
4M definitely looks thinner … must be the altitude 😀
If any team has more check-swing third strikes than the Reds, I’d be quite shocked. Maybe at some point someone will notice how often this happens and actually try to do something about it. Like, for example, encourage players to NOT check their swings when they have two strikes? Radical concept, I know, but I’m a rebel.
Good job Williamson. So far so good. Keep it up. 🙂
25 pitches, 17 strikes, small sample size but that ratio will work.
McLain also flashing some leather.
Myers! A single is fantastic.
Well whatya know? Myers with a good hard hit opposite way. 🙂
NEWS FLASH! Myers got a HIT!
Wil Myers everybody!!
Fairchild at least moved the runner.
Okay. Another sac bunt two days in a row. What’s wrong with David Bell playing small ball? 🙂 Before you know it we’ll see a hit and run. That just might blow our minds. 🙂
Considering how our bottom third is hitting lately I’m all for it.
Anyone take the under with Williamson and Anderson at Coors field?
I took over 12.
missed by that much
Alright Williamson! 34 pitches 0 runs through 3 🙂
Williamson with 33 pitches thru three. Is that good? I’ve never seen that before from this team.
DJ hasn’t gotten a hold of him yet
McLain 0-2 and SO twice . I guess that means it’s time to send him back to Louisville and call up someone else. Isn’t that how it works here?
Call up Reynolds!!
It is … that’s EXACTLY how it works.
Sour grapes. Just cause your boy has been exposed. No need to root against McClain. I knew you were waiting for him to pull a Barrero.
Try realism Beaufort. McLain may still get a hit tonight. But, yes, that’s how it works here. Personally, I’d move India to DH, McLain to 2B, and start Barrero at SS. The team would be much stronger.
Sounds like sour grapes ? Try some positivity!!
He’s a bum…until he gets another hit. 😀
Good 3 innings from Williamson. Hope the delay is short so he can continue.
My bad … must be the rain isn’t that hard and the fans aren’t that interested.
Lakers at Nuggets. no one in Denver cares about this game.
Lakers at Nuggets. no one in Denver cares about this game.
Senzel is a defensive wizard at third
Cannot understand putting McClain 2nd in the order. That seems like wishful thinking and unnecessary added pressure.
Nice bare hand play from Senzel .
44 pitches after 4 🙂
Two (2) men left in scoring position thru the first 4 innings! Not good! Ongoing problem with this team!
Reds worst defensive infield in baseball last year and Krall said he’s going to fix it. Senzel is the best third baseman. Hes playing at a very high level. Somehow missed Nightengale last article until today but he said McLain is every day SS and Barrero back up SS and get some reps in CF and Newman is utility player now and may play some first.
“Newman is utility player now”
Believe it when I see it. :)…or not see it.
He hasn’t started since McLain called up!
🙂
But he’s in the game now. Krall will have to trade him or fire Bell to keep Newman out of the game.
At the halfway point these two pitchers combined have 9.0 IP, 0 runs, 2 hits, 2 walks and 105 pitches. How ’bout them apples!
50ish pitches through almost 5 innings?
Someone tell this kid we don’t do that around here!
Sub-minimum pitch count. Borderline excessive strike/ball ratio.
56 pitches threw 5! Whoa! 🙂
Williamson is dealing.
Williamson 56 pitches in 5 shutout innings. Huh????
He must have slept through DJ’s game plan
Lance McCalister said today avg SP throws 87 pitches in 5.1 innings this year.
LDS wow you’re the expert on reality. So your so butt hurt over your boy. I’m out
Don’t let the negativity scare you off.
Not my boy Beaufort. I’m just not an impatient fan boy that burns through prospects because they aren’t hitting like Pete Rose.
The Reds have 4 Ks today.
McLain has 3 of them.
Tough start for the kid in MLB.
Ooooops!
Took until the 6th. But you knew somebody would send a blast out of the park. Too bad none of our boys did it first.
How he handles this will show a lot.
common…. only one out to a QS which is a great….. oh no…. here comes bell
Yep… I knew Bell was going to come get him when he should not have. The kid is still throwing the ball great, total 72 total pitches. Obviously his footing is a little messed up because of the wetness on the mound but Bell should have let him finish this inning… get six innings in with a chance to still be the winning pitcher. This is not a good decision by Bell at all but I knew we would do it because he’s so freaking predictable.
This decision to pull Williamson is why I really, really dislike Bell as our manager.
I thought it was a great call. Guy making his major league debut. Pitched a great game and can’t lose it. To each his own.
Come on now. Only one run with two outs in the 6th and 72 pitches. Why not leave him in there?
Thrall and Cowboy had a good take on it. I don’t love yanking him, but I don’t hate it either.
Nice debut for Williamson. Yeah, it’s only 72 pitches, but first in the bigs and in the thin air of Denver and just gave up the gopher ball … just wish the boys would have backed him with something.
What the heck? Why is Bell taking him out here? He didn’t even have 80 pitches yet!
He’s out of gas. First start plus altitude and he’s simply running out of air. Smart move by Bell and what a he… he… heck of an intro to The Show by Williamson.
Not sure he was out of gas but don’t dislike the call. Heckuva outing for the rook.
Bell thinks he’s Sparky Anderson reincarnated! Sparky was Captain Hook, Bell is Captain Tinker!
Tinker Bell?
Well after a double off the wall on the first pitch it doesn’t look like a good move so far does it? lol
Yes, yes it does
Turned out that way didn’t it? 🙂
Good call by Bell. Williamson one of the most important performances of the year. Let him get build some confidence and come back in 5 days against the Yankees. Reds bullpen gassed and he got 17 outs for them. Get the stix going!
Yup!
1000% disagree
Either way he pitched a great game and definitely deserves another start.
Nice comeback by Law.
Beat by Anderson would be humiliating. Where’s the hitting? Williamson far exceeded expectations.
Time for the bats to show up. It’s rare that 1 run wins a game at Coors. Not sure how long I can hold out. Maybe just the 7th for me.
Sometimes the best changes a ML Manager can make are the ones he doesn’t make!
NUTS!!! Stink, Fish, Pot!!!
Plus, Reds wasting another opportunity to move up in the Division as the Cubs are getting beat again tonight!
What has got into Nick Senzel?
Playing 3rd daily … consistency and I’d say he’s more comfortable there.
1000% agree….only took the Redlegs 4-5 years to figure it out.
Was about to say – it is amazing how different Senzel looks playing 3rd compared to elsewhere. I think the Reds have their everyday 3rd baseman.
Agreed, MM.
I’ve been saying this for years about Senzel and the ill fated CF experiment.
I don’t think the the whole “Bell Shuffle” works as advertised.
Senzel! Alright!
Wow!! Everyday 3B until EDLC gets here. But what if Nick has a .800 OPS when Elly is ready? Tough decisions. My guess is Senzel or India are trade bait at the deadline or the winter. India is the younger and cheaper of the two and would bring back more return. Nick is going to make some nice arbitration $$ next season if he keeps this up.
Oh My WORD!!!
Deepest part of the park … way to go Nick! Williamson is off the hook in his debut.
Senzel. Leave him at third and don’t mess with him.
Nick Senzel
Im starting the fan club back up.
Need a VP and secretary.
I’m in. I do like the kid, especially playing daily at 3B.
“Kid” is almost 28 years old!
Outstanding for Williamson. Had a lot of poise and control. Didn’t expect that. Our borderline disaster last year, Chase Anderson, looked even better with pinpoint control. This is why we watch.
On a side note, can’t fault Bell for taking him out. He was visibly shaken by what happened. Get him out with an outstanding first effort and no further damage. His start of 5.2 innings exceeds the team average. This game will not end at 1-0.
As I said, I don’t love it, but I don’t hate it. MLB debut, Denver air, just gave up the gopher ball. Handy DT Bell does tinker far too much IMO, but that quick hook was probably for the best.
I think the Reds have an every day 3b and SS and 2b and first baseman at least for a few weeks. Wow. That happened fast.
Yes, barrero will play SS or CF tomorrow and there will be rotations with Newman getting some utility work but this infield is set 5 days a week.
Oh, can we please see that? Frankly, I was a little shocked to see tonight’s line-up so similar to last night’s.
Young gets it done. Though that shot to the wall was tense.
Maybe I stick around a little bit tonight afterall.
Lance McCalister gave a catching stat today. reds pitchers are 8-5 with an ERA in the 3’s when Casali catches. Easily best of the catchers.
Yep… not an accident that Williamson such a good game with the Casali behind the plate
Also, his catching ERA this year is emblematic of his career. Pretty effective run prevention.
I wonder if Bell realizes he has three catchers on the roster and a fast runner on the bench?
Thanks for reminding him.
Well, it worked 😀
A side-armer who can pitch in the upper 90’s … go figure.
A little McLain time here.
Matt McLain!!! Plays add-on
MMc comes through! 🙂
McLain seems to have recovered nicely.
Yeah … McLain will be OK, guys. He’ll be just fine. Way to avoid the Golden Sombrero and play a little add-on.
1st to 3rd McLain 🙂
Mclain RBI first time…
I’m thinking Steer was trying a bit too hard with that AB. Let the pitcher get into his melon just a bit and then whiffed at the last offering.
Who gets the 8th?
That was an awful called first strike. Chumpire has been bad tonight.
Ended up way closer than I would have thought.
That was some interesting managing by Bell in the top of the 8th. First he lets Casali (and his pitcher-like average) hit for himself. This works out brilliantly, because Casali walks. Then he waits until India has grounded out, with Casali chugging into second, before deciding to pinch run for Casali. He pinch runs with Newman, who I assume isn’t quite as fast as Barrero. This works out brilliantly, as Newman beats the throw home by a foot or so. The guy just has a knack for making all the right moves at all the right times.
Blind Hog -> Acorn
Every once in a while.
In case I ever need evidence for the “just because things worked out doesn’t mean the manager deserves any credit” argument, I should bookmark the top of the 8th.
Exactly, J. It’s less about the moves than it is the timing. You also had Ramos available who is at least as fast as Newman.
Good news is Newman is unavailable now as a 9th inning defensive replacement … right? 😀
Steer was busy that inning.
Would love to see at least one more insurance run. I do believe I’m in for the duration tonight.
This game has gone nothing like I expected.
I expected to tap out about 30 minutes ago.
Semi-productive AB from the 14-year-old.
Let’s see if Maile gets his 1x per week hit here.
Alexis Diaz is playing in the All Star game.
This guy is competing his tail off.
3-1 win, just like everyone predicted.
No 40-pitch effort tonight.
Feels good. Onward for the rubber game tomorrow.
Night all.
Great job all around see you all tomorrow afternoon
great game for the staff.
Congrats on a superb debut by Williamson
Look at the ERAs in the box score – anyone expect that anytime this season?
It seems like everyone went into this game expecting a football score.
Instead, we got a well-pitched 3-1 win.
Impressed with Williamson. Where the heck did that come from?