The Cincinnati Reds needed what felt like a miracle to get off of the field with a victory last night in Milwaukee. The win evened up the series against the Brewers, with today’s game being the final one of the series, and regular season finale for the two teams. Whichever team wins today will be in first place in the division. First pitch is scheduled for 2:10pm ET.
Starting Lineups
Cincinnati Reds
|
Milwaukee Brewers
|
| Elly De La Cruz – 3B | Christian Yelich – DH |
| TJ Friedl – CF | William Contreras – C |
| Matt McLain – SS | Willy Adames – SS |
| Jake Fraley – LF | Sal Frelick – RF |
| Jonathan India – 2B | Andruw Monasterio – 3B |
| Joey Votto – DH | Abraham Toro – 1B |
| Christian Encarnacion-Strand – 1B | Tyrone Taylor – LF |
| Tyler Stephenson – C | Brice Turang – 2B |
| Will Benson – RF | Joey Wiemer – CF |
| Ben Lively – RHP | Freddy Peralta – RHP |
Starting Pitchers
| Pitcher | IP | ERA | WHIP | BB | K |
| Ben Lively | 60.1 | 3.88 | 1.21 | 17 | 59 |
| Freddy Peralta | 103.0 | 4.72 | 1.28 | 43 | 118 |
| Links: Ben Lively’s Stats | Freddy Peralta’s Stats |
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Ben Lively
Today will be the third time that Ben Lively has faced the Brewers in his last four starts. In the previous two outings he allowed two runs in 9.2 combined innings, but the Reds lost both of those games – each by one run.
When it comes to hitting for average and getting on base, there’s not much of a difference between lefties and righties when it comes to how they perform against Lively. The big difference is how much power they hit for. Right-handed hitters don’t hit for hardly any power. Left-handed hitters, though, hit for a lot of it.
Splits
| Split | PA | H | 2B | 3B | HR | BB | K | AVG | OBP | SLG |
| RHH | 120 | 26 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 7 | 33 | .234 | .292 | .351 |
| LHH | 133 | 30 | 6 | 1 | 8 | 10 | 26 | .244 | .301 | .504 |
Pitch Usage
| 4-seam | 2-seam | Cutter | Curve | Slider | Change | |
| Velo | 90.9 | 91.6 | 88.5 | 76.2 | 80.4 | 84.6 |
| Usage | 31% | 20% | 9% | 8% | 24% | 9% |
Freddy Peralta
A little less than two weeks ago Peralta faced the Reds in Cincinnati and he was dominant, tossing six 1-hit innings as the Brewers picked up a 3-0 win. He followed that up by giving up six runs to Atlanta, which has been the story of his season – inconsistent.
While the splits aren’t huge against Peralta this season, he does have some reverse splits going on. Left-handed batters hit for a lower average and a little less power than right-handed hitters have this season. They do walk almost twice as often, though, so they have a small advantage in on-base percentage over righties.
| Split | PA | H | 2B | 3B | HR | BB | K | AVG | OBP | SLG |
| RHH | 204 | 44 | 10 | 0 | 10 | 14 | 63 | .240 | .310 | .459 |
| LHH | 238 | 45 | 14 | 0 | 8 | 29 | 55 | .217 | .317 | .406 |
Pitch Usage
| 4-seam | Curve | Slider | Change | |
| Velo | 94.6 | 76.4 | 82.1 | 88.9 |
| Usage | 52% | 13% | 23% | 12% |
When and Where
- Game time: 2:10pm ET
- Where: American Family Field
- Watch: Bally Sports Ohio, MLB.tv
- Listen: 700 WLW AM (Cincinnati area)
- Forecast: They have a retractable roof
News and Notes
Going for the 1st series win
Today will be the completion of the 4th and final series between the Reds and Brewers this year. Milwaukee has won each of the previous three series.
Standings
| Team | W | L | GB | Playoff Odds |
| Brewers | 56 | 46 | 0.0 | 72.4% |
| Reds | 56 | 47 | 0.5 | 37.0% |
| Cubs | 49 | 51 | 6.0 | 16.0% |
| Cardinals | 45 | 57 | 11.0 | 4.8% |
| Pirates | 44 | 57 | 11.5 | 0.3% |
| Playoff Odds via Fangraphs | ||||
DT Bell, please give Joey a day off especially after a night game. Sincerely, Reds fans
+1,000
Veteran’s privilege. It’s Votto. He starts even though he’s well past effective.
Joey is DH. Want his LH bat in lineup against RH Peralta. The whole team has tomorrow off prior to playing Friday at LA.
His left handed bat is hitting a grand total of .192 against RH’ers. If it were anyone else, RLN fans would be calling for him to be DFA’d.
LDS, you know better than to quote only batting average when evaluating a player. Votto’s OPS versus righties is over .800 and 5th best on the team right now.
Now, I will agree he should be sitting versus a lefty starter.
Thank you wkuchad! Like you I don’t have issue sitting Joey against LH. Also DH him against RH is not a bad thing with how this team is constructed.
OPS simply means he hits a home run every week or two. Same as Suarez. He’s a net drag on the team.
I’m already calling for that, WKU. If Joey refuses to be a man of his word and step aside, and Bell lacks the spine to bench him, it’s left to Krall to DFA him. And you’re exactly right about his OPS being worthless. He’s hitting .192. Like 3 for his last 45 with zero power. If not for the fluke multi-HR games he had when he first came back, it would be much lower, and 1 hr a week isn’t worth much when in every other at-bat you’re an automatic out.
Same for Elly at this point, tbh. Obviously he shouldn’t be benched, but he also shouldn’t be batting leadoff. Let him bat 9th, Benson 1st, bench Votto, make Steer everyday 1st baseman and CES every day DH.
4-5 off days out of 7 games would be better actually…
+1000
He needs a little more than that
Good grief, People! I stayed past my bedtime for last night’s game and turned in after the Reds took a 4-0 lead! Figured that was safe! But, NOOOOOOOO!
Duarte had to walk a batter after getting the first 2 outs, then an infiled single, then BOOM, a Yelich home run! Diaz called to clean up Duarte’s mess but it was not easy, apparently!
Therefore, I am proclaiming today a No Diaz Day (NDD)! He needs some R&R before heading to LA! And, while we’re at it, let’s have another NDD, a NO Duarte Day! Let’s face it folks, Duarte, among other Reds relief pitchers, walks too many batters at the most inopertune times!
In all fairness to Duarte, ump missed strike 3 call on Fralick that wouldve ended the game. Then just gets bad luck on that dribbler down the 3rd baseline. Then a HR to a guy that’s not missing right now and has tremendous power to the opposite field.
I can’t agree with that. This game is absolutely huge and if you have a chance to win it you put Diaz in for the win. You can leave Milwaukee in first place feeling great and you have the off day tomorrow. On top of that, Diaz might not even get a save opportunity in LA..who knows
At the outset of this series I said that I am looking to Fraley and Votto to provide key hits to win us a game or 2. I just feel like in pressure packed, playoff like games, the rookies might be overwhelmed. Aside from that, I dont expect us to be able to string hits together, so HRs will be key to winning games, and Fraley just sneaks in a HR here or there, so he fits the bill. It has not turned out the way i hoped, even though Fraley had a hit in each game and Votto had an RBI hit last night but none of those hits, imo, was key hit. the key hit, the hit that broke the carmel’s back, came from rookie Benson. but we still have one game today and i am hoping to see a bomb or 2 from Fraley/Votto. i have the same jeans and Reds shirt on today as they brought good luck yesterday 🙂
As I said when you first commented that, if we’re counting on Votto for anything then we are doomed. Votto is well past his expiration date and it’s time for everyone to stop pretending he’s going to bounce back. What you’ve seen from him now is what you get, and it’s only going to get worse: an automatic out that will occasionally run into a home run every week or two.
As I often mention Votto coming back is becoming the nightmare that many were afraid of. The only solution is that Bell grows a spine, doubtful, or Votto himself steps up and does the right thing, telling Bell he should be a fill in once or twice a week.
It’s what Joey promised the fan base he would do.
Joey has shown everyone what his promises are worth.
And it’s a massive stain on his legacy.
Votto’s OPS versus righties is over .800 and 5th best on the team. Those are real stats and not smoke and mirrors.
Votto OPS is because of a great power hitting/HR output for a stretch a few weeks back. If he can keep that role as a peer hitting lefty bat against righties- he is your 6 hole hitter
Problem is he is like 2-45 and every other hitting metric has cratered, including his OBP which is not votto. He really needs a good day in the worst sort of way.
I’d that all you can bring day after day? Have you seen his swing? Have you seen his defense? Have you seen him run? All he’s doing is killing his slim chances of getting into the HOF.
He’s also a black hole in this lineup.
.800 OPS is true. But it’s also true that his average is low and he strikes out way too much.
A high percentage of his few hits have been HRs which impact the OPS in a small sample size.
I think it’s safe to say that JV has had a high percentage of poor at bats in which he had no chance to productive because he is overmatched.
His baserunning is bad because he is slow. But the rookies are the ones making mistakes on the bases
I wished he would have retired after 2022. Despite what he says, I don’t think he ever will. The only way to get him off the roster is to not pick up his option in 24. I’m certain that will happen.
Lets hope he produces a little, be ause I don’t think DB has the guts to sit him for more than a day or two.
Beaufort, what else do I need to bring? Those are his stats. Plus, he’s DH’ing today, so his defense doesn’t really matter.
A hitter is judged by his ability to get on base and ability to hit for power. He’s currently fifth best on the team versus righties in this regard.
And it was pointed out yesterday by Tom Diesman that Votto is top 3 on the team in AVG Exit Velocity, Hard Hit %, and Brls/PA % and currently has a team worst .157 BABIP.
It’s way too early to bench Votto.
Agreed, Greenfield. It’s not like Benson, who is 1 or 2 on the Reds in every important offensive category, BA, OBP, SLG, and OPS.
I said before, I believe best for the team is for Votto to retire or waive his no-trade clause, so we can trade him to Toronto for a handful of beans. Till that happens, I have to support him getting playing time. How much? It should lower if he doesn’t have the MVP bat going.
Long term I’d love to see Greene and Lodolo back healthy and Williamson stay effective enough to push Lively back to the bullpen. With how well he’s been throwing the ball, I really think he could be an internally added high leverage reliever
I think this is an important game for the Reds. Yes it is just one of 162, but it really feels like a key contest where a Reds win would make a big difference in the season. 2 in a row against the Brewers, back into first place. Keep the best record the wild card contenders, plus continue the momentum the gained after that disastrous sweep by the Brewers in Cincy. Let’s get it done boys….
Yesterday’s was the important game, in my opinion. After yesterday’s win the worst we can be is 1.5 out, best is 0.5 up. A loss yesterday and we could have been looking at 3.5 out heading to LA.
They should have announced Weaver as the starter to fake the offense into scoring enough runs to avoid using Diaz today.
And, then never start Weaver again.
+1,000
😀 😛 🙂 😮 😉
Best plan I’ve heard all day!
I realize he’s not cheap, but we’re (surprisingly) not on the list of Lynn’s no-trade teams (10 of them). A bunch of other contenders are.
https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2023/07/al-central-notes-lynn-guardians-twins-turnbull.html
He’s not cheap as far as $$$, but he should be cheap as far as who we would have to give up. I would take him over Weaver.
I really don’t see the motivation for giving up anything to get a pitcher that is 36+ YO, has an ERA above 6.00, and makes a ton of money. He’s neither young nor controllable long term. I wouldn’t give up anyone for Lynn.
Lynn would be Weaver 2.0 in GABP.
I hope they want no part of him.
Regardless of the outcome of today’s game, my worst fear for this series (a sweep by Milwaukee), has been avoided! A win today would generate some momentum as the team heads to play the Dodgers!
I am hoping for a blowout today. We need one. A 10-run second inning for the Reds would be nice. Maybe a final score of 12-3? That would cure a lot of ills. When’s the last time the Reds blew anyone out? Now’s the perfect time. No Weaver, but still dreaming.
OK, maybe 3rd or 4th inning? Make it happen!
So is anybody else getting massive pixelation and picture problems in the beginning of this game from the lovely Bally’s Network. I never seen anything like it….amazing how many problems they have broadcasting these games when it comes to decent picture quality
nope. Watching Bally’s in Chattanooga. No issues today like this but have had them in the past.
Three Ks starting the game. Peralta as Cy Young winner… Well…Let’s see
Not a good way to start the game.
Colin Rea had that sweeping horizontal slider hitting low outside corner Monday and reds righties never adjusted and Peralta is repeating
We got Yelich out!!
Bally via Spectrum cable streamed on Spectrum internet going a little goofy here near Dayton, OH (again) today. Pixelization and some short black screens which I’d guess are resets somewhere along the data line.
AAA Bats (MiLBTV) running on a screen right next to Reds via the same broadband connection (100mb) with no issues.
I’m getting that same pixilation stuff on the Spectrum app here in Cincy
It’s goofy on Alta Fiber Fiber Optics as well (formerly Cincinnati Bell)
Its a lot goofy in cincy Jim!
Guess this nails it is in the Bally feed vs my connection which is what I suspected and was hoping to hear if it had to be going on.
Thanks to all
I’ve never seen picture quality issues that are so persistent and so bad that it makes it hard to even watch the games like on Bally’s red sports network this year. I hope this is the last year the Bally’s is doing the Reds games because everybody no other carrier will not have these issues. I just checked and Bally’s carrying the Cleveland KC game is the same….terrible. Every other channel is fine. It makes it very hard to watch the games and enjoy them at all
Well there will be no no- hitter today.
For Peralta anyways
Actually a very nice stroke by Votto. Too bad it went for naught.
Peralta has been thoroughly mediocre against every team except the Reds. I maintain that it is their scouting of the Reds’ hitters that have allowed them to shut the offense down. They know this team inside and out.
I have to mow after work today, probably starting by 4:30. I normally don’t listen to anything whilst doing that, but depending on where things stand, I may have to give it a try.
Plan ahead….Mow on Red’s off days
Going out of town, so it’s how it worked out. It should have happened 2-3 days ago. I’ve got cabbage out there pretty much everywhere.
Cabbage?
You are mowing your garden?
I’m pretty sure that’s not exactly how that’s supposed to work…
Five batters, five K’s, then Votto smokes a line drive at 109 mph off the same pitcher. He’s become a very streaky hitter, but if he gets hot (let’s hope it’s when and soon) he can carry a team. And the batted ball stats still suggest he’s due. Definitely not time to bench Votto (at least against righty starters).
Which stat is that? His BABIP, frequently cited as that, is a staggering .167.
Bally must have been a little late paying the Duke Energy bill
🙂 Or network carriage fees with assured quality of service included.
Yeah That 🙂
See? Joey can do a 3 unassisted 😀
He is the DH
Even more amazing then!
CES is playing 1B…so the jury’s still out
OK, my bad on that 😮
+500 to those who pointed it out. +2,000 to Hanwai for that most excellent response 😛
Fitting that Monasterio plays for the Brewers, given the quality beer produced by monks through the centuries.
True, that! (Burp)
We’ve had some good Spanish devout names too: Iglesias, Encarnacion, and Cruz. Then of course you have Pedro, Pablo, Juan, Jose, Jesus, Tomas, Mateo, Miguel, and Joaquin. Can’t remember a Timoteo in the big leagues, strangely.
Reds’ batters have five (5) strikeouts thru the first 2 innings! Put the bat on the ball for Pete’s (Rose) sake! Either that or schedule everyone for an eye exam! It’s Freddy Peralta, NOT Cy Young on the mound today!
Should be so simple. Why didn’t they think of that?
That was going to be a strike anyway. At least it wasn’t a backwards K. Small favors, right?
Does Peralta get to 20 Ks in this game?
Peralta might strikeout 25 today.
7 out of 10 batters have struck out, Peralta is not that good and the Reds are not that bad, I hope.
Kind of an interesting stat, so Peralta’s era is 4.72 but it’s got to be very low versus the Reds…. which likely means his era is probably over 5 for the entire year versus the rest of the league…. just makes no sense at all
That’s good since he only faces the rest of the league after today.
Welsh having trouble with players in the game again. Just called CES Votto.
I wonder if Elly is ever going to be standing on first or second base. Is it just home runs and outs from this point on? I know Bell doesn’t like telling his guys what to do, but someone is going to have to politely encourage him to stop swinging at so many balls, and maybe he’ll eventually walk.
I’d say you just called out the most egregious thing HDTBell does/doesn’t do in the opinion of the vast majority of RLN posters. He doesn’t appear to be “managing” to any significant degree. It becomes very visible in the plate discipline of EDLC, India, and others.
He attended the Laissez-Faire School of Baseball Management.
(But he skipped the course on bullpen management, which is why he won’t leave a guy in who’s cruising along.)
I hope Bell gets edlc out of the leadoff spot. He has reverted to being a strikeout machine, and that negates everything else he brings to the table.
Make that 7 SOs thru 3! Bad News Bears were better than this!
Gutsy play there by India to get the lead man on the grounder.
Wonder what Peralta’s career high for strikeouts is?
That blasted Yelich is just killing us! Unintentional/intentional walk the next time please.
Yelich has just killed Reds pitching this year!
Brewers also play run on contact with 1 out and no force play anywhere but 1st.
Brewers are killing themselves this series with bad base running.
Very true. Some pretty TOOTBLAN-ish plays.
Must have watched Reds game film on how NOT to run the bases!
+1 😉 😉 😉
Yelich giveth and Adames taketh away … 😀
Ben Lively is turning into an effective and edgy MLB starter.
Reminds me of when Dan Straily was a consistent workhorse and 14-8 for the Reds in 2016. Lively’s peripherals are a little better. Looking at the numbers, I noticed that Straily is in the KBO as was Lively, something I didn’t remember when I started typing this.
Like I said last week I really like Lively and want to see the Reds re-sign him going into next year
In 86 career starts Peralta has struck out 10 or more a total of 8 times, with a career high of 13 (back in 2018)
He seems likely to at least hit that double-digit mark today, if not break his personal best.
Great job by Lively to escape wi to no damage there.
Brantley said Peralta got on that bunt like a cat, maybe a slightly impaired aging cat.
With feline leukemia
Was just thinking “Didn’t Frield used to bunt with two strikes? Whatever happened to that?” And then…
Big SO by Lively of perennial Reds Killer Adames for the 3rd out! Now for some crooked numbers!
Thrall mentioned the diminished running attack. 21 earlier vs. 3 of late. And that’s why we get a GIDP like that one.
They’re playing tight because they shrink under pressure, as they do in every meaninfgul game. They’re getting on base less, and when they do, they either freeze and don’t move a muscle, or they get picked off as Elly loves to do.
This game has the feel so far, as the Reds scoring 1 or zero runs
Or as MartyB liked to say in these close matinee games, Somebody from one team or the other is going to run into one and that could well be it for the day.
I’m afraid my wish for the Reds to attempt a stolen base when it makes sense to steal a base may not happen today. But I’m still hopeful that someone other than Benson will try to draw a walk at some point. I’m keeping that dream alive.
If Freddy Peralta pitched against the Reds every start, he would be a perennial Cy Young winner. Why is it every other team can figure this guy out, but our lineup is helpless against him?
Friedl must be hurt, because he didn’t attempt to steal.
But yet he busted it down the line on the bunt.
Any explanation?
A bunt by McLain would have kept the Reds out of the GIDP! It’s called SMALL BALL Bell!
Back to swinging for the fences or striking out. That strategy is on management. Try playing like they did in the 12 game winning streak. And it’s starting to look like EDLC needs to revisit Louisville and get back in the groove. He’s collapsed since move to lead off.
No idea why they don’t move EDLC down in the order and put India back at leadoff. Just try it for a week. It’s insane to look at India’s splits and not try him back there.
He was already cratering well before his move to lead off. He’s just continued his trajectory of ineptitude. I agree, he needs another stint in Louisville or, at the very least, a move to the bottom of the order.
He was still at .297 in the #4 slot. Less than 1/2 that leading off. But Bell is totally incapable of reading a situation and reacting to it. So, it’s on Krall to solve. But interest in Reds baseball has surged with EDLC’s arrival so they’ll let him flail around for the rest of the season.
He was still at .297, but a lot of that was because of how he set the world on fire in his first couple of weeks. Check the stats beginning right after his player-of-the-week, when the league really started figuring him out, and you’ll see a different story.
Various people have been claiming Bell might be keeping Benson at the bottom because he’s afraid he can’t handle the pressure of hitting at the top. Elly clearly hasn’t been able to handle the leadoff spot, and nothing seems to be changing, and yet he remains there day after day after day. I think it’s time for people to come up with a different theory about why Benson isn’t leading off.
But you know who can handle the leadoff spot? India. While I still think he’s odd man out and well situated for a trade, if they aren’t, then he’s the leadoff hitter.
Yeah, because we need more Newman
And again the home plate umpire. Last inning Lively doesn’t get two calls that are right on the edge of the zone…. inside edge versus Yelich and at the knees versus the next batter. This inning Milwaukee’s P gets two borderline high strikes versus McClain…the second one strike three looking on a ball that not only was over the strike zone but was a slow breakingball that was coming down so there’s no way it was a strike. This umpire crew is literally terrible, biased against the Reds or both behind the plate the entire series
It really has been an astonishingly one-sided bias for all three games.
There seems like a bias, but their catchers are in the top of pitch framing and ours aren’t. Not a coincidence at all who gets the calls.
This. Yes, the umpires are idiots and clowns that are easily fooled, but it’s on our catchers for not doing anything to fool them. Until the MLB moves to robot ump, that’s a necessary part of the game.
So glad the Reds never try anything as risky as a hit-and-run. Too risky. And, as we all know, there’s absolutely no risk when the guy stays at first. What could go wrong?
Is Peralta so good pitcher to keep the Reds scoreless thru 10 innings with just 3 hits , two of them infield hits in the last 2 games?? I think something is wrong here with the offense…
I’m a bit shocked the umpire called strike three on a pitch that was just barely a strike. He must have been confused about which team was hitting.
Well, I guess my hopes for an early onslaught leading to a blowout by the Reds was all for naught. Looks like another nail-biter in the making…. Sigh. As long as the Reds win, I guess.
Nice GR2B by India. I don’t think he was getting a triple anyway.
Now bring him in. Leave no Red stranded!!
Votto moved him over. I’ll take that.
If Bell would just implement some Small Ball strategy it might create a crack in the scoring dam! Just a run now puts you in the lead and may force some changes in how the Bernies are playing!
A low scoring game favors the Brewers with their offense and with having Devin Williams to close out the game!
A productive out is about the best we can hope for geriatric Joey at this point.
He had an RBI single yesterday and a single today, so I think we could theoretically hope for a single.
You can hope for that in the same way you hope you’re gonna win the powerball, sure.
If I won the powerball as often as Votto has hit singles in the past two games, I’d be doing pretty well.
I won again!
Thought Strand could hit a fastball….apparently not
Kinda embarrassing to get smoked on 3 straight, knowing what was coming.
Yeah, that at-bat proves he can’t hit a fastball. He’s doomed. You should print and frame this comment to admire when he’s eventually DFA’d because he can’t hit a fastball.
Peralta only at 75 pitches so he has a few more innings in him still. Reds have been absolutely hopeless against him in two games.
Ten (10) strikeouts thru five (5) iinings! That projects to 18 SOs by game’s end if my math is correct! Pathetic! I’m sure the Dodgers are taking note!
Make that 13 through 6! 😀
I can’t believe the high whiff% Peralta is inducing…The hopes are in Lively keeping the Brewers out of the scoreboard too
Both of Stephenson’s at-bats he undermined himself by checking his swing on balls nowhere near the strike zone. The first time, it was 2-0 pitch a foot inside. Then in his second at-bat, with a guy at third, he stands there and watches strike three after checking his swing on what would have been a ball. It’s just such a bad approach to hitting.
His confidence is waning. Doubt and indecision in his head.
That’s probably true.
That play right there is a perfect example of why I’m hesitant to send Elly back to Louisville, even though he may ultimately need it. Yes, his bat has more holes than swiss cheese, and he should be moved to the bottom of the order, but his glove and throwing arm save runs.
Got out of that one. Got to score.
Brewers have missed nice chances to score…Maybe it hurts them later…
Not when the reds are tossing out at-bats like Elly just put up.
Wow 12 Ks……..
Friedl. Was hoping that would go out. Hope we don’t strand him.
Anyone else just let out a disappointed sigh when they realized Friedl’s ball was a foot short of a home run, because you already know he’s gonna be stranded?
Yes.
Peralta really isn’t this good. His ERA is well above 4 and his WHIP is about 1.3. And the Reds are striking out like they’re facing Ryan, Clemens, et. al. Sad performance so far.
They always make him look like prime Pedro. It’s pathetic.
This is bordering on the ridiculous! 13 strikeouts and counting thru 6 innings!
The way the Reds are playing today I believe they would strike out if the ball was on a tee!
Even McLain is getting in on the act. Swung at two balls nowhere near the strike zone, took a pitch down the middle. I know Bell hates to tell these guys what to do, but maybe someone should politely suggest a little less guessing and a little more “see the ball, hit the ball.”
The rookies are getting ate up today, that is why the vets need to really help out this club. Rookies 0 for 8 with 8 strike outs. Oh Boy
0-10 with 9 Ks actually. Been a rough one.
Both are wrong. 0-8 with 7 ks
On top of being terrible, these Brewers games are terribly boring. It’s like the two teams compete for how much nothingness they can accomplish, then usually cap it off with a Reds loss. If you imagine the Reds’ season as a fun a movie day in the classroom, the Brewer-heavy schedule is like the lame worksheet that goes along with it. I could not be happier that today is the end. Go Reds, and let’s get some runs.
Peralta is done for the day at least.
I would not be happy with that decision as a Brewers’ fan. Also strange that they didn’t go to Milner with Fraley and Votto coming up.
BIG DP.
Unfortunately they can’t score off their pen.
Have to get to Peguero. Don’t want to face Payamps and Williams needing to score.
He’s gotten some major help from the defense, but Lively is quietly pitching a gem. Too bad his teammates aren’t able to figure out what a ball or strike is, and seem to be guessing on almost every single pitch.
Peralta gifted 14 Ks but Lively has tossed 6 scoreless innings just with 69 pitches…
Wow. Just wow. 7th already. Score some runs. Please? Maybe things will break loose now that we’re into the Brewers’ bullpen. Oh, wait …..
Have to take advantage of the error now.
Welp. They tried to be aggressive at least.
Watching while in a meeting, but looked like Fraley was safe and HTDBell should have challenged.
Then India reverts to form of late.
i think he decides to swing at pitches when they leave the pitchers hand….no matter if the pitch is in a different time zone
I think I’ve figured out what’s wrong with the Reds batters today! They already shipped their game bats to LA!
Hopefully signs of life from Votto.
This is Brewer ball folks. They cant hit either x for Yellich and Contreras. Guarantee you Brewers fans are throwing things at the TV asking how in the heck is Lively shutting us down after Abbott shut us down??
Let’s give a round of applause to Ben Lively. I swear I saw this guy in flannel and a cowboy hat rustling cattle on the north 40 with Kevin Costner on Yellowstone season 2. Big strong strapping guy who’s been around the block and just is a strike thrower who mixes speeds and locations and has no fear.
Good teams win in different ways and Brewer ball is 2-1 sometimes. Cant wait for the 3 run bomb like at Coors or GABP against the Cubbies. Gotta win at situational baseball and advance runners and get them in. Reds game planners haven’t really communicated that well to the hitters. Situational baseball against the Brewers is unique.
You call it “Situational Baseball”, I call it “Small Ball”! All the same, must manufacture runs without HRs or extra base hits! Reds, at least this 2023 edition, has not learned or refuses to apply it!
John Dutton does not need to rustle other folks cattle.
Frankly, Lively deserves better! Like some runs maybe?
15 SOs and 0 BBs. Inexcusable. Does Bell ever adjust? Not that I see.
why throw Strand a strike? He swings a basically anything
Same with edlc
CES has certainly been disappointing. You can see why he wasn’t called up earlier like the armchair GMs here had been clamoring for.
I would say he’s only been disappointing against the Brewers…like everyone else.
Melvin, don’t bother. This is how some people act when things don’t go their way. They make snide comments about everyone.
Milwaukee seems to bring out the worst in our plate discipline. Trying too hard?
Oh, brother. 2-0 Brewers
I just texted “but I have faith the Brewers will score soon. A guy just got on base.” One second after I hit the”send” button….
Well, maybe they’ve seen Payamps and Williams enough by now to actually get a read on what they are going to throw.
Well, that’s likely the ball game. That’ll be 3-10. Pathetic.
Pathetic hitting. Very good game by Lively.
After that rocket to right I was just thinking it’s probably time to pull Lively. He hasn’t pitched into the 7th very often and the 1-2 pitch wasn’t a very good pitch…. kind of in the Wheelhouse for a left-hander…then a few seconds later game over. Oh well, hopefully that’s the last we’ll see of the Brewers this year. I would not want to play them in the playoffs because they have a ton of confidence against us and honestly all these super low scoring games are kind of monotonous. I’m sure the Reds hitters would prefer to not face that pitching staff again this year, so if we make the playoffs hopefully we can avoid them.
India HAS to make that play. He once again shows me that he cannot play 2B well enough to stay there. He should get a new tattoo, “E-4.”
But but but…he’s a leader.
I thought it would take a HR to win this game. It killed me that it’s the Brewers that did that.
By their worst hitter as well. Always seem to come up with just enough against the Reds.
Those 2 runs are all the Bernies need! If the Reds don’t score in the top of the 8th inning, they certainly will not score against Williams in the 9th!
So, with that, it’s a Clete for me as I finish up some stuff here at work and prepare for the drive home! Will check the final score and SO totals when I get home!
Well we all felt they had to win one. We will see how that works out. The fact is so far the Brewers have been at best an average team against everybody but the Reds, especially on the road. The Reds need to have a good rest of the road trip, 4 and 3 would do, even 3 and 4 would work but nothing worse. 3 and 4 put them 7 over and that will be acceptable. However we will all hope for better,
Yep and honestly at the end of the day if you would have told me we’d go 1-2 and beat Burnes I would have been okay with that. Just move on, get back to playing well the rest of the trip and hopefully we don’t see them in the playoffs because in 2023 they are our Kryptonite. I would imagine the Reds hitters are very happy knowing they won’t have to face that pitching staff again this year because for whatever reason our hitters just haven’t performed well at all versus that group. The Brewers have a very good staff iverall, but not as good as we make them look. Just like Peralta today…. is era is basically 5 against everybody else.
No issues at all with the effort and now it’s on to LA with a day off tomorrow. I expect the Reds are going to come out relaxed and feeling a little rejuvinated knowing they are FINALLY done facing the Brewers after playing them 9 times in the last 2.5 weeks, with so many of them really hard games …..and go take two of three from LA this weekend
I think I’d feel at least 25% better about Bell if he occasionally had some sort of facial expression or body language suggesting he’s at least a TINY bit involved in what’s going on. Like, maybe a TINY look of disappointment when the 9th guy strikes out on a pitch nowhere near the strike zone or the 5th guy takes strike three down the middle. Or just a TINY bit of frustration when the opposition hits a home run and now it seems like you’ve got almost no chance of winning. I’m not asking for wild theatrics, just something that suggests to me (and to the players) “I have some expectations and I’m not happy when they’re not being met. I’m not equally happy or sad or annoyed or satisfied with whatever outcome occurs.”
I’m not saying I’d suddenly start liking him as a manager, but I’d like him a little bit more. He’s just reinforcing my sense of a guy who really does very little managing, and is basically just there to fill out the lineup card and make a bunch of pitching changes.
“Both teams played hard.”
I don’t understand. He has the wrong facial expressions or lack thereof and that’s proof he’s a bad manager? Make it make sense.
I’m disappointed Taylor hit a hr but it isn’t Bells fault. The fact you didn’t see a reaction from him (is there a camera focusing on him the entire game?) isn’t proof he isn’t into the game.
My impression of Bell is that he doesn’t do very much leading. My impression is that he’s very passive, allows the players to do basically whatever they want, tries to make sure everyone likes him, etc. That isn’t what I want a manager to do. His facial expressions and body language reinforce this belief of mine. If he actually looked slightly annoyed once in a while (other than at umpires), I might have a sense that he actually does have some clear expectations. I don’t feel that he does. I think he’s just willing to accept whatever the players give him, and hopes for the best. I’d feel better about him if he did *something* to convince me that’s not true.
Make sense now?
It’s all part of the same big picture. His hitters aren’t disciplined. They don’t look for walks. They swing when it doesn’t make sense to swing. They don’t protect the plate with two strikes, and watch strike three down the middle with runners on base. They’ve struck out 16 times, most against a mediocre starting pitcher, and it’s been mostly self-inflicted wounds because they’re so undisciplined in what should be considered an important game.
Now, I see the manager, and does he look even the tiniest bit annoyed by any of this? Not at all. He looks exactly the same as he’d look if they were ahead 9-0. That troubles me. If it’s fine with you, so be it, but it troubles me.
This is how bad it is with some in there. They take shots at Bell for anything and everything. Nevermind that Bell probably shows more emotion and support for his players, especially when it comes to chewing out umpires than any manager in the game right now. But hey, he shows no emotion. LOL…Talk about losing all credibility.
I’ve said it before and still believe that David Bell is a natural as a front office type, not as a field manager. He became the Reds manager from a job in the S.F. Giants front office. Bell seems like a gentleman, but for the long baseball season a little too placid.
Chris, let me suggest you google the phrase “Dave Martinez argument” and rethink what you just said. You lose a lot of credibility when you say things that seem so uninformed.
But, you see, I’m not saying Bell doesn’t stand up for his players. He does do that. I’m saying he doesn’t seem to demand anything of his players. My point is that he’s too concerned about having his players like him, and not concerned enough about making sure they’re approaching the game the way they ought to approach it. See how you’re not actually contradicting me? You’re actually supporting me. He’s a pro-player manager, which the players like. Similarly, most students like teachers who don’t give them any homework, but it doesn’t mean those are the best teachers.
Agree, I am a longtime OSU football fan. Back in the Tressel era folks used to say he was like a fighter pilot because he was seemingly without emotion yet clearly engaged and intense on the sideline.
With Bell who knows?
“Engaged and intense” in a passive, laissez-faire sort of way?
With Tressel, I at least had the sense that players understood there were minimum expectations, and if they didn’t meet those expectations, they’d be on the bench. With Bell, I absolutely don’t have that sense.
Yeah, with Tressel, love him or hate him, you can’t say that you couldn’t tell that he was trying to run a tight ship and at the very least held players accountable for their on field performance. Regardless of any emotion (or lack thereof) that he showed after the games, you knew he was fully invested in every single game.
@J I think Tressel’s intensity came through to the players and they knew best be they match it at all times they were on the field or prepping for games. Otherwise, as you said they’d be watching from the bench area.
Stephenson needs to get the piano off his back and hustle to 1B. He hustles, he is safe.
I wonder if Stephenson has been nursing a leg issue for much of the year. As late as last year, he appeared to have approaching average speed on the bases. He could go 1st to 3rd; and, score from 1st on doubles a normal noncatcher could.
This year he looks slow and has even been pulled for a pinch runner on occasion.
Payamps is ridiculous. 16 straight scoreless outings or something like that. I’ll be glad to not watch him pitch the rest of the year. Reds’ rookies now 0-12 with 11 Ks in this game.
Of course EDLC gets a hit as soon as I post that. High fastball is definitely not the pitch to throw to him
Peralta kept his fastball just high enough EDLC could not get on top of it. He was either going to foul it, pop it up, or eventually miss it.
If the pitches had bern just a hair lower who can say what would have transpired? Peralta was dancing with a cobra and lived to talk about it.
Elly! Maybe that’s the one that gets him going…
I hear the lawn calling … and the call is getting louder. We don’t score something here, then I’m pulling a Clete to go do that chore.
The frustration with squandered opportunities is what irks me the most. Lively pitched his tail off and was very efficient. I know he gave up the blast, but still. We have been unable to back him or so many others when playing these Blasted Bernies.
I need the night off from baseball and tomorrow as well. Not sure if I’ll be in any position to watch Friday given it’s a 10PM start.
Once again, y’all make this kind of steaming pile more bearable for me.
And EDLC at least went with a pitch and got on base.
I hope they spend some money on a middle
of line up bat this off season.
Yeah, someone expensive with a recent history of good hitting. Like a Moose or a Myers free agent. That should do the trick.
Oh sorry I forgot to consult with you before I shared my opinion, because we all recognize you was the obi-wan Kenobe of Reds baseball.
Dude , you have a very high opinion of yourself and let me tell you it’s not warranted.
That wasn’t a very strong argument, frankly. The more comments I read, the more I suspect my opinion of others may be a bit too high.
Votto in fairness to J, that’s a ridiculous need. There is absolutely NO reason to spend one NICKEL on a bat this offseason. I would even go so far as to ask, if you have been watching this Reds team outside of when they play the Brewers.
Well said. Maybe I should have phrased it that way.
It should be pointed out that there is no rule requiring one to post every, single thought that passes through your head. Take a look through this thread. It’s clear some here feel that it is requirement.
Im big fans of TS and India, both the players and people ,but year 3 has been a bit of a struggle. Pump the brakes on those extensions buying out 1-2 years of FA.
Im a big fan of TS and India, both the players and people ,but year 3 has been a bit of a struggle. Pump the brakes on those extensions buying out 1-2 years of FA.
Stephenson has the injury recovery excuse at least. For a catcher, he’s still pretty valuable, though he really needs to work on his framing skills.
As for India, I’ve been in favor of trading him for awhile. Just not really sure how much value they will get back.
I agree. It’s easy to find a second catcher and run it back with Stephenson and 2nd catcher in 2024. I dont see a big market for India. Reds going to have some tough decisions in the infield this winter. India looks like a decent but not stellar MLB player. He may need the Reds more than the reds need him as he is a fan favorite and has value. Ive been to multiple games that were packed the last month and Votto/Elly/India get the biggest cheers.
I feel the same, which is why you really shouldn’t extend our current rookies until after their sophomore season.
It’s a fine line. If you don’t extend, and they continue to mash, they get exponentially more expensive, even in sophomore year. You have to balance value and risk.
That’s why some teams, like Atlanta (Acuna and several others), Tampa, even San Diego with Tatis Jr, have been aggressive in extensions early, prior to sophomore year.
Ugh. And the walk comes around to score. Think I’ve seen enough for today.
For the 3 game series, the Brewers have had at least 1 base runner in every inning but 2 ((spanning 26 innings)
Wow. A single followed by a run-scoring double in the corner. I remember when the Reds used to do that
Ballgame. Very disappointing
Here comes the mother of all rallies (maybe).
maybe not,
Have you all ever thought about how many at-bats a team averages per game?
Currently, the best in MLB is Texas at 34.85. (Remember that winning teams often skip their last 3 ABs)
The worst is NYY at 32.8
Cincy is at 18 with 33.78
How many hits per game?
The best is Texas at 9.52
The worst is Oakland at 7.24
Cincy is at 15 with 8.53
RBI’s per game
Texas at 5.56
Bottom is Oakland at 3.42
Cincy sits at 8 with 4.71
What’s significant about this?
1. 2 ABs separate the best from the worst team in this stat.
2. Most teams are within 1 AB from the top or the bottom. There is very little to be done to improve hits stat.
3. Your first five batters are going to get 4 ABs per game. Your last 4 will get 3. Batters 5 and 6 are on the bubble. This is almost universal in the MLB
4. Every team gets a pretty similar amount of baserunners per game. THUS…
5. It’s less about getting runners on and more about getting runners in.
Putting guys with strong slugging percentages behind guys with good OBP is vital. This is why it’s good to run a lineup that really has two great cleanup hitters separated by other batters. Cincy has been doing this pretty well this season and thus, its RBI numbers are ten places above their AB numbers.
I would also imagine that if you did these numbers from June 1st, the Reds would be even higher in those metrics.
Glad I missed this one. Everyone hits Peralta but us. We can’t hit anyone on the Brewers. Maybe tomorrow off will help and they can steal the LA series, but I’m not holding my breath
Good riddance Brewers. Yeah Reds are young. Yeah they’ll learn. Yeah I still believe and will follow them. But that’s really embarrassing. 18 K’s? Not one walk? No plate discipline whatsoever. I know. Someone’s gonna talk about how great the Brewers staff is. Save it. Embarrassing. 3-10 vs Brewers, a very average bit solid team? Lucky they won last night. Onto next game. Still only 1.5 back as of today. Let’s hope other teams have better luck vs. them. Geez.
No plate discipline at all.
And I think Contreras knows Reds very well.
I think he calls the game.
Reds batters way beyond unbalanced when Contreras catches.
Notice even with a 3 run lead Counsell is still running his closer out to start the 9th.
It’s been the same script in nearly all of their wins. Starter goes 6 then Peguero, Payamps and Williams finish it off if they are in the lead.
Counsell is a big league manager. Bell o the other hand….
So does Bell.
All managers do.
Is anyone else flabbergasted at how much they walk Frelick? I didn’t think he was THAT good.
McLain fitted with a sombrero.
His first?
18 Ks..Wow
18 Ks and zero walks. Didn’t think it could get worse than the Burnes game.
I guess they preach missing bats on the offense as well.
Well, the pain of watching them play the Brewers is over for this year. Couldn’t happen soon enough.
On to LA!
Spencer Steer is buying DB dinner.
Losing is one thing but getting embarrassed with 18 strike outs is another. I am afraid that the rookies may be running out of gas and are also failing to adjust to the changed other teams are making when pitching to them. We will see what happens in L.A. 2 out of 3 would be great but they really need at least 1.
Agree with this.
It’s always on the players, but I feel that the scouting reports, for both the hitters and the pitchers weren’t as good as the Brewers had on us.
When you play a team a bunch of times over 2 weeks, you’d think that they could come up with a plan against their pitchers. If 3rd time through the order is considered dangerous, they should be able to start to figure the Brewer pitchers out when you get up to 9-10th time through the order.
It is on the players to do their prep and follow through in the games; but, it is on the manager to set up a structure for making sure it is done and providing accountability consequences for those who do not follow through.
Nasty day for the AAA Bats too. They blew a 4 run lead into a tie in the bottom of the 8th then got walked off in the 9th.
Nothing of note from Barrero or Fairchild as they wait to be traded or called up for guys who got traded off the 26 man roster. No hits, a walk, and a K for both.
Noelvi Marte had a big day, 2/4 (triple) with 2 RBI. Pushed his OPS to .898. Regardless of how he does, barring a couple of longer term injuries, I don’t think we see him with the Reds this year.
Or if he was really smoking at the end of the AAA season (a week ahead of the end of MLB season), and the Reds make the postseason, I suppose they could use a guy on the IL as a cutout to put him on a postseason roster depending how few pitchers the Reds want to carry. But that’s a real long shot.
Silver lining is Reds bullpen gets a huge break x for Cruz. Days off tomorrow. Kudos to Lively for eating solid innings.
I realize we haven’t had good communication on here but I have appreciated you baseball related comments. I have a question for you: Do you feel the rookies are hitting a wall? The majority of these guys were in AA trying to make it to AAA at this time last year. Beyond the obvious jump in competition, I think the mental aspect of playing in the big leagues versus playing in the minors can really be taxing. There is an entirely new set of responsibilities (press interviews everyday and the the like) that may also be taking their toll besides the need for more time to adjust to big league pitching. I don’t think there is much the manager can do to accelerate the learning curve for players in this situation. They have to adjust to all of the new things that come with the biggest jump they make in their careers. We have to depend on all of these guys to make the big plays as they are trying to make these big adjustments. What are your thoughts?
No worries Brian. We are fans. It’s been a fun year. I have some off nights too, lol.
I think MLB pro scouts and analytics are sophisticated and they’ve now got oodles of information on our rookies and the other side are professionals too and it’s really hard. Elly got promoted from Dayton a year ago to Chattanooga. Hes now facing Corbin Burnes and Devin Williams. His trajectory as well as MM,CES,SS is amazing. Im ok with enduring the struggles of young guys. That said Votto and india and Stephenson arent exactly playing at Silver Slugger levels either. It beats watching the lineup from last year with Tommy Pham and Moose and Papierski et al.
The young guys will be ok. I dont know if that means they make the playoffs tho’. Baseball is hard with ups and downs playing 162x a year. Best thing is they get a day off and mentally just need to move forward. Big picture….. Reds are still exceeding every expectation and Im along for the ride. I dont like the Brewers but respect them and for sure Counsel.