After fumbling away the game last night for the 4th consecutive loss, the Cincinnati Reds will turn to their current Ace in Andrew Abbott to try and get things back on track against the Washington Nationals. This afternoon’s first pitch is set for 4:10pm ET.
Starting Lineups
Washington Nationals
|
Cincinnati Reds
|
| CJ Abrams – SS | Elly De La Cruz – SS |
| Lane Thomas – RF | TJ Friedl – CF |
| Joey Meneses – 1B | Matt McLain – 2B |
| Keibert Ruiz – DH | Spencer Steer – LF |
| Stone Garrett – LF | Joey Votto – 1B |
| Riley Adams – C | Christian Encarnacion-Strand – DH |
| Ildemaro Vargas – 3B | Will Benson – RF |
| Alex Call – CF | Nick Senzel – 3B |
| Michael Chavis – 2B | Luke Maile – C |
| Joan Adon – RHP | Andrew Abbott – LHP |
Starting Pitchers
| Pitcher | IP | ERA | WHIP | BB | K |
| Andrew Abbott | 65.0 | 2.35 | 1.03 | 22 | 71 |
| Joan Adon | 5.0 | 5.40 | 1.00 | 2 | 4 |
| Links: Andrew Abbott’s Stats | Joan Adon’s Stats |
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Andrew Abbott
Since the day he was called up, Abbott has been one of the best pitchers in baseball. He’s posted a 2.35 ERA in his 65.0 innings and had only had two starts where he’s struggled. One of those starts, though, was his last start when he didn’t get out of the 4th inning against the Cubs.
Teams are not sending left-handed hitters to the plate against Abbott unless they are among the best lefties in the league. And even with that select group, they aren’t doing any hitting against him. They’ve walked just one time in 49 trips to the plate against him and have just two extra-base hits. Righties are doing better, but they still aren’t doing a whole lot – though that have at least shown a little bit of pop.
Splits
| Split | PA | H | 2B | 3B | HR | BB | K | AVG | OBP | SLG |
| RHH | 206 | 36 | 8 | 1 | 8 | 21 | 53 | .198 | .277 | .385 |
| LHH | 49 | 9 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 18 | .188 | .204 | .271 |
Pitch Usage
| 4-Seam | Change | Slider | Curve | |
| Velo | 92.7 | 86.6 | 82.9 | 80.1 |
| Usage | 50% | 15% | 18% | 17% |
Joan Adon
Today will only be the third appearance in the big leagues this season for Adon. His other two this year have been in relief where he has thrown a combined five innings. In 17 starts for Triple-A Rochester this season he’s posted a 4.62 ERA.
His splits this season are mostly from Triple-A and while he’s a right-handed hitter, it’s righties that crush him and lefties that are merely ok against him. The big difference is that right-handed hitters hit for a lot more power, though they do make more contact – it’s just not resulting in more hits. Lefties strike out far more often, but still hit for a similar average and get on base at a similar rate. What they don’t do is hit for much power against him.
(AAA and MLB)
| Split | PA | H | 2B | 3B | HR | BB | K | AVG | OBP | SLG |
| RHH | 192 | 45 | 17 | 2 | 8 | 19 | 32 | .266 | .346 | .533 |
| LHH | 214 | 50 | 7 | 1 | 4 | 23 | 52 | .265 | .341 | .376 |
Pitch Usage
| 4-seam | 2-seam | Curve | Slider | Change | |
| Velo | 94.9 | 93.6 | 80.6 | 85.8 | 87.9 |
| Usage | 51% | 5% | 20% | 8% | 16% |
When and Where
- Game time: 4:10pm ET
- Where: Great American Ball Park
- Watch: Bally Sports Ohio, MLB.tv, MLB Network (out of market)
- Listen: 700 WLW AM (Cincinnati area)
- Forecast: 83°, cloudy, 5% chance of rain
News and Notes
Lyon Richardson to debut tomorrow
While David Bell was not committed to saying that Lyon Richardson would be the starting pitcher tomorrow, he did acknowledge that he would pitch in the game at some point. Richardson, the clubs 17th rated prospect, will be making his big league debut. Over at RedsMinorLeagues.com I wrote about his season, where he’s coming from, and what we can expect to see from him in the game.
Jake Fraley to the injured list
After being noticeably absent last night, Jake Fraley was placed on the 10-day injured list with a stress fracture in a toe on his left foot on Saturday afternoon. The Reds called up TJ Hopkins from Triple-A to fill out the roster.
Standings
| Team | W | L | GB | Playoff Odds |
| Brewers | 59 | 52 | 0.0 | 71.2% |
| Reds | 59 | 53 | 0.5 | 29.3% |
| Cubs | 56 | 54 | 2.5 | 37.2% |
| Pirates | 49 | 60 | 9.0 | 0.3% |
| Cardinals | 48 | 63 | 11.0 | 0.6% |
| Playoff Odds via Fangraphs | ||||
The Reds playoff odds are slipping away, now Fraley gone for who know how long. I am beginning to think it just wasn’t met to be this year. The injuries and lack of trades when needed is really hitting home. When was the last time a team made the playoffs starting 4 rookies everyday in August as well as 3 starting pitchers? But, let’s all keep watching and hoping.
I’m not expecting to make the playoffs now. And as I said yesterday, I don’t really disagree with Krall’s decision to hold on to the prospects. On the other hand. finding a new home for Senzel, Newman, would have been a good move. Certainly, trading Senzel for AA pitching prospects beats letting him start every day since he went public with the closed-door meeting. They need to win the next two against the Nats. They need to put some distance between themselves and the Cubs, not themselves and the Brewers.
Newman is the mystery – must have been zero interest from other teams. Looking back to the Naquin, Drury, Pham deals, it’s hard to believe he had less value than all of those.
Newman had more value than Naquin and possibly Pham. But his value did not compare to that of Drury and as people desire Lorenzen.
If a team is in sell mode in July they want prospects and not proven backups.
Cubs up 7-2 in the 5th
Larkin pushing the narrative that “it doesn’t matter if they win this year, they are going to be good a long, long time”.
Maybe they will be good a long, long time but It won’t be with the Reds. This team will together 3 years, 4 years tops.
And Larkin just felt the need to wax philosophically about Senzel’s emotions before and after the deadline and how he’s just a man, like all the others. Larkin had the perfect opportunity to just let that topic sit unaddressed but he couldn’t help himself. Unnecessary.
The Reds’ offense has run out of steam. Someone mentioned that they have all started swinging for the fences and have gotten away from that small ball style that made them so fun to watch in June. That’s a coaching issue.
The Reds are 11-14 since the ASB, which is a .440 winning percentage. If they keep on that pace, that means they’ll only win about 20 of their remaining 46 games, which would see them finish 79-83.
We’ll see if they can turn it around, but it would not shock me to see this team finish right around .500.
At their average age, I don’t think they’ve run out of steam. I do think the batting order has something to do with the diminished performance. As I said earlier, I don’t think EDLC is a lead off hitter. I think India is. And so on,
It’s not that they don’t have the physical ability to perform, rather, it seems to be mental.
They have mentally run out of steam.
That I agree with. But the cure is behind us
Still fuming about last night’s extra inning loss to the Gnats! Can’t blame it all on Bell as the Reds hitters went 0-10 with RISP. I did find it odd, given Bell’s track record, that he did not pull Ashcraft after 7 innings when he was approaching 90 pitches and then again after he gave up the 2-out hit in the 8th!
Huge missed opportunity to move back into 1st place and separate from the Cubs and other teams vying for a Wild card spot!
Today is a new day! Here’s hoping any HRs hit are not solo shots and we do a better job of advancing runners via stolen bases or hitting (not striking out) behind runners and judicious use of bunts!
Go Reds! Play smart baseball and score early & often!
I was okay with Ashcraft coming back out in the 8th, but I think he should have had the bullpen ready to go and pulled Ashcraft when he faced the tying run.
GA was cruising, but Thomas has been crushing Reds’ pitching this season.
Why take the risk?
Tennis player Evonne Goolagong used the term ‘walkabout’ to refer to her lapses of concentration on the court.
I wonder what Bell calls his?
Surprised Steer is in LF with Senzel at 3B instead of the other way around.
Even though the deadline is passed, they still have to market Senzel as a 3B to have any hope of moving him ahead of the nontender date during the off season 😉
Possibly slightly better D with this arrangement, Senzel’s 7 errors the other night notwithstanding.
@Harry
That cracked me up. Thank you. It did seem like 7 because of how bad they’ve been playing (or at least not winning).
Steer has been asked to do a ton as a rookie. Play LF, play 3b, play 1 b, hit DH, fill in at 2b. I cringe when people criticize his defense and occasional error. He has zero continuity day to day as a rookie and still hits well. Leads the team in HR and hits and doubles and will pass Fraley for RBI lead soon. Were it not for McLain, I’d say he is the positional team MVP and perhaps because he is a “glue guy” they should be co-MVP’s.
Steer is gold!
Does anyone know if the pitcher today is a starter or an opener? I see he was in relief before.
Prior to 2023 all his MLB appearances had been starts and he had averaged just over 4 innings per start.
Today is his 3rd MLB appearance of 2023 but his 1st start of the season. Guess we will find out as the game progresses whether he is a starter or an opener
https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/a/adonjo01.shtml
Both teams are hoping their pitcher goes 7+. I am hoping Adon is treated more like an opener after giving up 7 runs in 1.2 innings.
Abbott has hit his rookie wall. outta gas.
The whole team is outta gas and lifeless! Ready for college football and NFL seasons to start!
Down 1 already. Man if Abbott starts pitching bad , the Reds are done.
And he walks another. Bengals start preseason games next week.
Not a bad first inning. All three guys struck out. Somebody, anybody needs to get hot.
Not a ideal Offense start…3 Ks including a strikeout bunt…awful
Opposing pitchers’ fault, they are not throwing fat, juicy fastballs down the middle (not that our guys could hit them either right now)
Abbott is wild as a tasmanian devil.
He is all over the place
Abbott retaking the things as he left against Cubs….
AA with 4 BBs- WTH is going on
Oh, that’s what a sacrifice fly is? Good to know.
Abbott has zero command because he is a rookie who has never pitched this much and is fatigued and tired and hit his wall. Reds are risking a major injury by continuing to pitch a guy who clearly is fatigued. #1 predictor of arm injury is too many innings and # 2 predictor is long high pitch innings. Abbott has been great but he is gassed. Shut him down or least give him some rest and a plan to slow down.
I wish they would let me pitch.
I can walk guys and throw gopher pitches with the best of them.
And I would do it for nothing
Walks by our pitcher and strike outs by our batters! Not a good formula for winning!
So, the Gnats pitcher with a pregame ERA of 5+ is pitching like Cy Young against the Reds! Look familiar?
Sadak was saying he had a 1-12 record last year with an astounding 7 ERA. Ummm we have a guy with a 7 ERA.
Abbott couldn’t find the strike zone with a compass today!
This is like watching a ship sink and not being able to stop it. This team is out of gas.
What does that even mean?
Every team they play has played about the same amount of games.
But the Reds are the only ones out of gas?
Nothing against you, but I’ve never liked that phrase.
And they are one of the youngest teams in baseball.
Bullpen has pitched more than any other in baseball. 4/5 most pitched bullpen guys in MLB pitch for the Reds. Abbott has never pitched this much…ever in his life….Out a gas means hitting a wall that you’ve never experienced and being asked to do it again and again and again. Abbott is outtta gas. Bullpen is outta gas.
Some of the other guys just stink.
I do believe it’s on the manager to do something different instead of being so passive.
Larkin wants to see Benson at the top of the lineup? He’s suggesting Bell isn’t doing the right thing? This is heresy.
I stopped watching those two clowns. I got the radio feed going.
Heard that.
Perfect game going for a AAA pitcher who absolutely sucked last year and this year.
Adon with a No-Hitter thru 3 innings!
We haven’t won a game since Bell got his big extension. Shocking!!
Just what we need, the offense is cold off today and against a triple-A 4.70 ERA pitcher…
4.70 is great…just ask Weaver
The players supposedly want to play hard for Bell, and this apparently translates to seeing 33 pitches in the first three innings against a lousy pitcher, with four strikeouts. Nobody is interested in learning how to bunt, or shorten their swing to make contact with two strikes, or draw more walks, etc. If this is what “playing hard” looks like, I’d hate to see what it would look like if the guys were just phoning it in.
And as I’m writing this, Friedl misplays a ball like he’s a little leaguer…
And you actually believe this, that the players like playing for Bell? I don’t
Well I wouldn’t say they’re playing hard for him right now anyway.
Are the Reds just down as a team because they saw that the front office didn’t do much to help them at the deadline? Maybe something psychological? This is awful to watch. Later taters
They are young and tired after such a high energy streak. I doubt they care about the lukewarm stove.
Friedl blows one in the outfield. Another run. Clete. I got better things to do.
Our defense has been poor lately.
Ya think? Offense is apparently on sabbatical as well!
So our pitching, defense, and offense stinks today. Other than that we’re playing well.
Man are you picky. 😉
Lane Thomas just kills the Reds. AA didn’t give him much, but he still doubled.
Reds getting ready to drop to third place very soon,..probably tomorrow.
And don’t forget the Pirates and Cardinals.
This is so sad.
That ball should have least been stopped by Senzel. I’ve about had enough of him.
I have to agree.
That’s another baseball IQ play.
This is too painful
Bell ought to resign in the middle of this game. Just acknowledge he’s not the right guy for this job, mistakes were made, this isn’t a good reflection of who he really is, and he’s very sorry if he offended anyone. Just leave. We’ll forgive you if you leave now.
Heard that. He got the ball rolling in the wrong direction with his dumb moves, and now we can’t win a single game. It’s called changing the momentum to send us into a tailspin. He’s the worst manager in baseball, by a wide margin. Fire Krall for giving him the extention.
I doubt the Bell extension was given by Krall. Nothing is done in Redsland without the final approval of the principal owner, Bob Castellini.
Reds are 3-5 since the Reds extended Bell’s contract for another 3 years! That winning percentage is strikingly similar to the Reds record for the entire 2022 season!
I wander if his new contract has a 30 day period where either side can opt out? 🙂
They are about to be swept by the Nationals. This team will not finish .500, but don’t worry Bell got it under control. We all should have seen this coming with so many rookies.
If the Reds had started off as they did, then had slow climb to third place at a few games over .500,, everybody would have been thrilled. Getting to the same place in a different manner changes to optics, but not the outcome.
I really think those 2 beat down games in Chicago have had a real psychological affect on this team….it’s just not the same team anymore and I’m not sure we have a manager that can do anything about it….the collapse down the stretch 2 years ago gives me that feeling
Bell lost last night’s game for us. 100% on him.
I’ll not quite throw towel in on the season…yet. But it may not be long. I believe we most likely are witnessing the beginning of the second half collapse and will never see first place again, or even a wildcard spot. Maybe this is closer to who they really are and what we saw in June and July was simply the best of who we could be.
Thought for a second Elly might walk to leadoff an inning. But of course he’s swinging at the 3-1 pitch because going 3-2 would be unbearable for a leadoff hitter.
That’s what happens when a leadoff hitter swings like he’s the second coming of Ted Williams.
That’s why some people said that Reds needed add starting and relief pitching, of course, if the FO wanted to go for it… But this year won’t apparently…Hope the team rebounds at any moment, idk…
It’s pretty obvious that they needed a ton more than 1 guy, thus, probably a good thing they didn’t do it.
I thought SP might have helped, but not nearly enough.
Man, I don’t understand what is happening with this team! I turn it on and they are down 5-0 to the Nats?
Whatever you’re imagining, it’s not as bad as what’s actually happened in this game.
We look bat at the plate, but this guy is dotting every pitch in his arsenal.
Right. Give the Nats pitcher some credit. Might be the best start of his life and that happens.
The Reds are as lifeless as ive ever seen them. Between the beatings in chicago and losing the game yesterday that they never should have lost, they just look defeated.
Inspiration is needed from the newly extended manager and his staff.
Five runs down. No hits. No walks after four. Yikes!
They really need to get rid of these big time bats commercials.
I said the Reds could well be in 3rd place by the time Greene returns I’m thinking Monday or Tuesday now
Poor pitching combined with non existence hitting is not a good combination. Reds appear to be heading the way of the Pirates earlier in the year. I hope not but I am not seeing much out of this team besides strikeouts, errors, and outfielders turning to watch balls fly into the bleachers.
You got that right.
Blinded by the goal of wearing the Viking headpiece instead of meeting the ball and getting on base.
There are so many issues that have cause this, injuries, Bells extension, no dead line help, Senzel’s problems and the rookies running out of gas.
Elly can hit the ball incredibly hard, but swinging at a 3-1 pitch when you’re leading off an inning down by 5 runs is just terrible baseball. Yes, it was a strike, and it would have been great if he’d hit it into the river, but most of the balls he puts in play aren’t even singles. If he’s a legitimate leadoff hitter, he should be perfectly comfortable hitting with a 3-2 count. He shouldn’t feel like “oh, I HAVE to hit this pitch because I can’t risk getting into a 3-2 count.” Yes, he’s young, but someone should have mentioned to him by now that he needs to draw walks, and especially when he’s leading off innings. I blame the manager more than I blame Elly, because I’m sure he thinks he’s doing exactly what the manager expects of him.
7 hits and five walks for the Nats. 0 and 0 for the Reds. Ugly. This is five ugly games in a row.
Elly has incredible potential, but he is NOT smart. That will always hurt him,..even if one day he can cut down on his strike outs.
He is not smart? Id say thats not a smart thing to say. Just because he didnt try to work a walk at 3-1? Is that it? Any other evidence of him not being smart?
Didn’t the REDS just beat the Dodgers 2 out of 3 last weekend? Something has changed since then! Sure doesn’t look like the same team playing now.
They extended Bell for three years. Have they won since then?
Yes, they announced it around the time of the first Dodgers game. Can’t remember if it was before or after.
LDS, you and I have been trying to alert other fans about Bell for years until we are Red in the face lol…I guess we have at least 3 more years – Go Reds !
Maybe the players just haven’t come down from that emotional high after hearing of his extension. 🙂
I’m not sure, but I’m told they love playing for him.
Well we got some balls out of the infield that inning.
Really thought CES would show more pop than he has. He’s hit ok overall for his first taste of MLB, but the power hasn’t really come yet
He looks like his plan at plate is to not K. Rarely hits anything hard, just makes contact, which is ok if your. Slappy but he’s supposed to be a power hitter
I keep thinking they lost 6 in a row early and came back but this time it just seems different.
Reds have but one smart person in the whole organization from what I’ve seen,..the Cowboy. They should fire Krall and hire Brantley as GM before we squander all this young talent over these next few years. Jeff has common sense,..unlike the rest of the decision makers.
Who brought in that all young talent? I’ll give you three guesses, take your time it’s not an easy question. Hint: you want to see him fired.
Yes. I want to see him fired. You obviously are pleased with Bell’s extention. I am not. I am not fine with having decades of mediocrity as an organization. It’s fine to have opposing opinions.
Bell’s extension had zero.zero to do with Nick Krall. I’m sure he was as shocked as we were. We find out Buddy Bell “retires” suddenly and without explanation. Two days later son David gets an extension. If you don’t smell something fishy, I don’t know what to tell you. This has the
Castellini’s fingerprints all over it.
>>>If you don’t smell something fishy, I don’t know what to tell you. This has the
Castellini’s fingerprints all over it.
And you have proof of that? You obviously do. That,..or I guess you think we should just go by your nose.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/General_manager_(baseball)
>>>The general manager is normally the person who hires and fires the coaching staff, including the field manager who acts as the head coach.
But Pete. I trust your nose more than anything else. 🙂
Krall works for the Castellini family.
Oh really? I had no idea. Now you are really enlightening me. Krall’s job is to hire and fire the manager. That’s what the book says. But personally,…I trust your nose over what is normally the case.
P.S.
So if Castellini is now owner, and he is also taking over Krall’s job as GM (as you say),..then is he also taking over Bell’s job and doing the managing behind the scenes too? What does your nose tell you? Maybe I should be blaming the Castellini family for some of Bell’s bonehead moves. Thanks for shedding some light on that for me, Pete.
P.S. 2
Btw,..I do blame the Castellini family for hiring Krall and Bell in the first place. But not for the dumb decisions made by Krall and Bell. They are responsible for those. Actually, Krall has made some good decisions (the trades) and some bad ones (Bell’s extension).
If they can manage just one hit they could carry that momentum into tomorrow’s game
lol
So, Bell sends Abbott out to start the 6th inning after 91 pitches and 5 runs! He should be fired for that decision alone!
Don’t worry. He’s on it! This guy doesn’t miss a thing.
It did not go well. With another rookie Sunday I just don’t know when the bleeding will end. Last nights game really really hurt.
One of the things about Bell’s handling of pitchers. He’ll leave some guys in to be hammered and then turn around and pull a reliever after 5 or 6 pitches
longtime reds follower from going to games with grandpa back in the crosley field days. it took years before the big red machine won the world series in ’75. teams don’t mature and become steady worldbeaters overnight. there will be growing pains but we have some nice pieces in place. and some nights this is a really fun team to root for.
The Reds will probably put Abbott on the IL before his next start, so much for “Ee have all we need”
With all the young talent the Reds have for trade capital they don’t have nearly enough to cure what is going on now.
Huh?
Batting practice. Somebody better call Abbott’s dad.
Was thinking the same thing
Lineup and offense and run production is not ideal. Jake Fraley might be a key contributor against righties despite the RLN narrative.
That said, Im playing the young guys, not Senzel or Newman. I m also putting CES at first base most days. JV can DH and hit 2 home runs every 10 days as he hits .200 and gets on base at .300 and is slow and a bad defensive player.
Elly needs to keep hitting and adjusting, Steer and McLain need to hit 2/3 and Benson needs to replace Freidl in the the top 4. Develop the young guys. Votto, Senzel, Newman arent on the roster next year.
Abbot throws 105 pitches. Hope they have a plan for landing the plane on a long runway.
So, now Bell wants to “save” the bullpen?
Abbott hasn’t been the same since they stretched his pitch count two starts in a row. Wouldn’t be surprised if they shut him down in the very near future.
Seriously, enough with Bell bashing. I’m not saying he’s a good manager or bad manager but this is not on him entirely.
Did he forget to tell Joey to bat higher than 200? Did he not tell Luke Weaver to not stink? Bullpen use? Is he leaving Mariano Rivera in pen and pitching Cruz? Have you seen the names in pen? Have you watched the games? Btw don’t strike out 18 times. Get a base runner today. Yeah, it’s Bells fault. This is todays society in a nut shell. It’s always someone else’s fault. How about the players that are not performing? Can they have blame? How about the GM for not adding ANYONE? Sheesh
One thing that is on Bell 100%: a lead off batter that strikes out, never walks
How many different lead off hitters this year? India, Friedl, De La Cruz, Newman. Miss anyone? I hate that he puts the most physically talented player on team in a spot to get the most at bats. How incompetent
What about the no-show playoffs in 2020 or the collapse in 2021 down the stretch or the 100 losses last year? There is nothing about his record that says he is anything but a mediocre manager at best. The team looks completely lifeless right now.
You make some good points.
Well, to that point, the Great Collapse of 2023 is now on like Donkey Kong.
And the reason is pitching. Pitching, pitching, pitching.
The Reds were hot for a while, because they did get some “good” pitching in games, the bullpen was pretty good, and they were scoring a lot (relatively) of runs. We were all pretty jazzed about it, because we thought the Future, the Rebuild! had arrived and was working.
Now the reality of baseball is evening up the score. In the hot streak, they likely won games that they should have lost. Now all they are doing is losing. Today makes 5 in a row….and there is no palliative remedy in AAA ball. Besides bringing up Connor Phillips (which may or may not happen), the AAA cupboard is now pretty bare.
Nick did not really do what was possible (not saying what he should have specifically done), but did NOT improve the pitching staff measurably. Sure, Hunter Greene and Nick Lodolo will be back…someday.
Who picks the lineup? Who keeps starting Votto’s .200 average? Who leaves the pitcher in to be pounded? Who keeps players who aren’t performing?
Yeah let’s bench Votto after all he’s done. What better hitter is sitting on next to play in front of HOFer?
Votto hits a HR every other week or so. That’s what he’s done. He’s no longer a first ballot HoF’er
Is it purely coincidental that Bell just happens to have a bunch of hitters who all strike out a lot, rarely try to walk, and seem to have absolutely no idea how to hit a sacrifice fly or advance a runner? Did he just get very unlucky? Or is it possible that their approach to hitting is in some way influenced by the coaching staff’s guidance and expectations?
A bunch of hitters that strike out? You mean baseball 2023? Did he pick those players? Oh he should just coach them up? Ok I see.
Don’t the Reds lead baseball in steals? Aren’t they the most aggressive baserunning team in baseball?
Well said. It’s one thing to disagree with managerial decisions, but the constant Bell-bashing hasn’t quit since Opening Day. Some apparently forget this team was expected to lose as many as 100 games and are still only a half-game out of first place in August.
I think they are stilled tired from that long road trip.
Wait and see how they are after a couple of those upcoming off days.
I’m at the game. Looks like 0-5 for.me this year. This team has zero energy. In between pitches all the fielders have their heads down kicking dirt. In the dugout all of them are sitting and not interacting.
But as bell said “nothing is going to change.”
FWIW this is Brantley’s take. Unfortunately, we are observing the same on TV.
LP sorry they are stinking up the joint. It takes a lot of time, energy and money to attend a game, especially if you are coming from out of town.
I don’t know what the Red’s record is this year in
Saturday home games, but it seems like the wife and I have been to every one of them they have lost. I won’t be going to another Saturday game ever.
Sorry, the Reds ruined your day.
It’s impossible to say, obviously, but it really does seem like the Bell extension and/or lack of moves at the trade deadline have completely changed the psychology of this team. In the span of about 10 days it feels like they’ve transformed from “hungry” to “complacent” to “lazy and indifferent.”
Even Sadak sounds depressed today. There is actually down quiet time during the broadcast. Larkin is questioning the lineup. Crazy. 🙂
Btw, this is eerily similar to 2021. reds had a great summer. Castellanos and Winker were great making As team and generating excitement. Ran outta gas last 50 games as bullpen stunk, injuries exposed depth and offense cratered.
And it was the perfect time to extend Bell another 2 years instead of waiting till the end of the season.
Good to see the reds FO learn their lesson –
they gave Bell 3 years this time instead of just 2
No sense going through all that paperwork again after just two years. 🙂
This is where I think it would help to have a manager who’s intense, demanding, etc. The kind of guy players might not always love playing for. Someone who’s willing to say “you’re not getting on base enough, so you can’t be the leadoff hitter until you get things straightened out.” Or “you’re striking out too much, so I’m insisting that you start taking some pitches,” or “you’re not hitting well, so you have to bunt in this situation,” or “you’re not making good choices about when to steal, so I’m telling you to steal on the first pitch.”
Bell just assumes everything will work itself out if he just leaves the players alone to do whatever they want. It works great when everyone is “on,” but when they’re not on, we get what we’ve been getting for the last few days.
Yeah, in the back of my mind all season was 2021. This sure does seem like a repeat.
It will certainly make it difficult to get excited about this team moving forwarded with 2021
and 2023 in the back of my mind.
Nick Krall has done a good job trading established players for prospects, but selling players isn’t the only job of a GM. He also needs to know how to add players as well.
Ultimately though, it comes down to the man controlling the purse strings.
the difference is there’s no Akiyama and Moose and Votto $75 million owed next year nor was there ridiculous rookies in Elly , Steer, and McLain with good young pitching in Greene, Lodolo, Abbott, Ashcraft, Phillips, Diaz and no payroll in 2024.
You re correct. See what the purse strings and budget are in 2024. If its $145 million, we will be great…If its $95 million, then yuck.
I’ll dance in the streets if the Reds have a $95 million dollar payroll in 2024.
Well at least they won’t get no hit. It’s a start. Just amazing the difference in the hitting. They were relentless there for awhile and just constantly putting pressure on the other team with base-running and walks. And then the Brewers just took it out of them.
Thank goodness the perfect game is ruined
Now the shutout. Heck. let’s win this game!
Boom! Maybe that will jump start them
Friedl makes the nats manager look bad. 3 run bomb.
Martinez does npt need any help at that.He was ranked ahead of our guy but he is just a place holder until they are good again
How quickly things change 🙂
There’s still life after all. We got three back after Friedl’s HR. 🙂
The Reds did beat the Braves 11-10 I think?
Good move by Bell playing Friedl. 😉
Owning that extension.
Now that the Reds have decided to score some runs, it’s annoying that Abbott was allowed to remain in the game to give up that 6th run. At the time it didn’t seem like it could possibly make any difference, but the manager should probably have acted as if it could.
Might be the biggest hit of the season if somehow someway we end up winning this game. At the very least I hope it wakes up the bats and the entire offense if not just for this game but the remaining games of the season. Don’t come in Washington expecting to win without playing your best.
Remember Hal King, anyone?
Thanks for the history lesson. I didn’t know Hal but decided to look him up.
I swear Votto is just trying to his a HR every time up
Sure does seem like he is. Most of the swings are really hard, and he’s starting every swing early to make sure he pulls it. He’s completely abandoned the approach that made him such a tough out for so many years.
Yep. He doesn’t hit line drives at all anymore
The Nats will have to walk a bunch or throw the ball around and they are known to do that because we are homer or punch out and have been for awhile.Need runners any way you can get em.
Ten pitch inning for a guy with a 7 era.Thats awful.Martinez may pitch the ninth and save his closer.
The Reds seem to be entering another one of these stretches in which nearly every run they score is due to a home run. It’s apparently SO much easier for this team to hit home runs than sacrifice flies or singles with runners on base.
This game was going so poorly I decided to set up the new phone I got on Prime days. Fortunately, that process worked as advertised.
Saw Friedl hit the HR but now it looks like things are headed back the other way.
What is the shortest tenure for a manager after being granted an in season multi year extension, asking for Nick in Cincinnati.
Wrong question. The correct question is: what is the longest multi-year extension following another multi-year extension that a manager has ever been given without ever winning a playoff game or looking like he’s ever going to win a playoff game?
Or even half the games he’s managed. As someone hated last week, Bell is the first Reds manager in team history to be extended beyond 5 years with a losing record
haha For an ownership that does’t like signing multi year contracts it would definitely seem they made a boneheaded move signing bell to three years. One of the stupidest things I’ve ever seen. So if they DO have to fire him they will lose all that money. I don’t like to use the term luck but for lack of a better term David Bell is one of the “luckiest” managers ever having all of these rookies come up and be so good so fast.
“So if they DO have to fire him…”
Other than perhaps he gets into some legal/ethical trouble, I can’t imagine a scenario in which the Reds would feel they need to fire him. They didn’t fire him when his team collapsed down the stretch, or after a 3-22 start, or after losing 100 games when he played most of the year with major leaguers. What could possibly cause them to feel they need to fire him now? Maybe if they lose every game for the next couple years they’ll consider it.
The difference is now is that, when they get all of the pitchers healthy, the Reds will lots and lots of talent. So much so that if David Bell can’t win with these guys he can’t win with anyone.
Nats pitchers throwing a lot of meatball strikes on the first pitch but Reds seem content to take them. Gotta adjust the approach.
It’s amazing how many first pitch strikes they take as a team since they basically don’t walk at all
Another 4 errors. This is a mental collapse not a physical one. Krall needs to man-up, say he made a mistake, and fire Bell TODAY.
Seriously?
Very. When guys start making multiple errors per game, it’s mental, rarely physical.
“Four errors is not going to change who we are!”
Nope 4 error for the 2nd time in 4 games. But as Bell said nothing is going to change.
Maile is the Reds’ best two-way player since Alex Blandino.
They must take EDLC out of lead off they are really hurting him and the team.
EDLC rapidly burning through the hoopla.
His lack of pitch recognition and grip and rip approach has surely been broadcast league wide.
Like the Grateful Dead song “…Set up, like a bowling pin. Knocked down, it gets to wearing thin….”
You are correct he is adjusting to MLb pitching and taking some lumps. he is still just 21 and despite that an average+ hitter with the electric ups and painful downs. maybe another 750 at bats????
Compare him to other 21 year olds? How bout 25 year olds? I dont think anyone wants to go there right?
I will say this though, besides Bell the two biggest reasons this team was never goig to make it to September are Greene and Lodolo. They have simply run out of miracles. Finally everybody is really right about Votto home run or nothing. No contract for him next year.
The Nationals just scored yet another a run by getting a guy in from second base. Was it a home run? No. They did it with a short little swing, just trying to make solid contact, hitting the ball the other way. This often works for players who are willing to try it once in a while.
Yeah, the Viking thing is even more lame when you’re getting pasted 6-0 by a weak team.
A Devo hat for a double, being forced to stand outside the stadium with your Golden Sombrero might be more effective.
🙂
Of course I’ve been calling for Finnegan for 2 months. He’s over 30, wouldn’t have cost much. Comes in and dominates the Reds
Perfect ending. Guy ahead of you walks, you’re down by four runs, so what’s the obvious thing to do on the first pitch?
But hey, they love playing for Bell. And they always play hard for him, whatever that means.
Maybe tomorrow will be the day when someone scores without a home run?
This game started awful and finishes ugly… Embarrassing really…
This is not the same Reds team that swept the 4-game series against the same rival Nats in Washington…
The sellout crowd today got to see a real humdinger. Definitely got their money’s worth.
Let’s face it, Bell is a subpar marginal manager. The players do not play sound fundamental baseball, Krall, let them down by not helping them with needed pitching, etc. Ownership was not interested in being a serious contender, when the opportunity was there for the taking. The future was now, not next year. Next year, who knows?
Everything rises and falls on leadership, the Reds have none at this point. The fan base has been shortchanged.