Unfortunately the Cincinnati Reds season is over. They finished below the .500 mark and well out of contention for the playoffs. That said, many of you are more than just Reds fans and will still follow the playoffs even without them participating. At least today we’re going to create a space for everyone to discuss the playoff games – we’ve got four of them today. But just in case you missed it, we’ve also had two Reds related articles today. The first from Jason Linden discussing an offseason plan for Cincinnati to get into contention next year. And the second highlighting Elly De La Cruz for winning the National League’s Player of the Month award for September.
Philadelphia Phillies vs Atlanta Braves
This is the first game of the day and is scheduled to begin at 2pm ET on NBC and Peacock. There’s a heck of a pitching matchup here with Jesus Luzardo taking on Chris Sale. Luzardo went 14-5 with a 2.86 ERA this season while striking out 221 batters in 179.2 innings for the Phillies. He may not be the best lefty on the mound today, though, as Sale went 14-9 for Atlanta this season and had 200 strikeouts to go along with a 2.16 ERA in his 162.2 innings this year.
Atlanta won the division, going 94-68. The Phillies grabbed the final wild card with a win on the last day of the season to finish 88-74. The Braves went 9-4 against Philadelphia during the regular season.
Chicago White Sox vs Houston Astros
The second game of the day is set to begin at 5:00pm ET. It will only be available on Peacock. The pitching matchup in this one isn’t as exciting as both teams are going with a bullpen day. 99% of the audience is mad about it, as they should be. It may make sense from a certain standpoint but it’s not fun or good for the game as a whole.
Houston won the AL West with an 81-81 record. They will be hosting the series over the White Sox who grabbed the last wild card spot with an 84-78 record. Houston won the season series by winning five of the seven games between the two clubs.
Boston Red Sox vs New York Yankees
The third game on today’s schedule will be one of two wild card teams from the American League. It will be available on NBC and Peacock. The Yankees went 93-68 to take the top wild card spot in the league. Boston finished 87-75 to grab the second AL wild card spot. Payton Tolle will take the mound with a league leading WAR in Mustache Awareness. He was also good on the mound, going 9-6 in 26 starts where he had a 3.03 ERA in 148.2 innings with 171 strikeouts. Cam Schlittler is on the other side and he had arguably the best season in the AL, going 14-6 with a 1.95 ERA in 193.2 innings with 239 strikeouts for New York.
During the season the Yankees won the series. New York won seven games. Boston won six.
Chicago Cubs vs San Diego Padres
The final game of the day will be at Petco Park in San Diego. This game will be available on Peacock. This one features a matchup between the top two wild card teams in the National League. The Padres went 91-71 to take the top wild card seed, while Chicago finished 89-73 and earned the second wild card. The Cubs turn to lefty Matthew Boyd today. He went 10-5 on the season with a 3.91 ERA in 126.2 innings. San Diego will counter with Michael King, who went 12-10 in his 32 starts with a 3.21 ERA.
The two teams only played six games against one another. But the results were quite definitive as the Cubs won five of those six contests. San Diego won the first game between the two teams in April, then lost the next five (the other series was at the end of June).
Hard to get too excited here, but I would like to see SD send the Cubs home.
Gonna be some really entertaining series—looking forward to all of it! My rooting interest from here on out in order: White Sox, Brewers, Guardians…..yup, that’s it.
As Reds fans, do have a self serving interest in who wins?
Big market team win – MLB is broke…maybe it will force the league to fix things.
Small market team wins – See? MLB not broke…no need to fix it. Anyone can win.
When I say “fix it”…I mean allow more of the talent pool be available to more teams, with a cap/floor. It doesn’t mean the Reds will be better, because the owners and front office are still there.
That being said my rooting interests are.
Brewers
Rays
Anybody but Dodgers or Yankees
“That being said my rooting interests are.
Brewers
Rays”
I might add Cleveland. The argument that MLB is not broke doesn’t hold water no matter who wins.
The game is broke for teams with stupid management. They can’t seem to find their way to a winning season.
The Reds, the Angels, the Marlins, the Mariners, the Mets (yeah, with their huge budget, they are really mis-managed). The Rockies, the Rangers, the Tigers….a lot of teams that were thought to have talent fell on their faces this year….some do it every year.
The other option is to increase the talent pool!!!!!!!
Yes the reds ownership is cheap and yes maybe Krall isn’t the Albert Einstein of baseball trades…. but should we be this bad? Should KBH be batting .140?
Rule changes to promote more offense are the key to more parity in the game. Both in mlb and also more importantly in youth baseball. Getting more kids playing baseball is the key to making the talent pool bigger.
Reds had 4 players hit well below the back of their baseball card this year (3B, CF, RF, and 2B). Krall traded for two of them and drafted the other two.
Not sure why teams would use a bullpen day in the playoffs but whatever. haha We’ve got no room talk since we’re not even there.
I’m not on the Reds. I will talk all I want! Lol
Talk away! 😀
@Melvin
Sanchez and Wheeler had to pitch the last two days to clinch.
Luzardo is good, but only pitched 1 inning since the IL…
He ended up going 5, but their contingency was to stack their #4 guy if Luzardo had to be cut short.
Still unusual to have a bullpen day in the playoffs don’t you think?
Not really. Recently a lot of teams have going to this option instead of using #4 or #5 starters. Especially true in a short series.
“Not really. Recently a lot of teams have going to this option instead of using #4 or #5 starters. Especially true in a short series.”
Shows how much I’ve been watching MLB playoffs the past few years.
Votto and Kruk on the same broadcast is gold.
I like Votto’s input….not a fan of Kruk’s dialogue
Kruk is funny….to a point. Then he just gets kind of annoying.
If you are broadcasting a game, this is not a rehearsal for a stand-up comedy routine. Humor is funny when it is contrasted with being serious and on point. Kruk just want to be clever and silly.
Agree David. It’s okay for a minute…then it seems like he’s trying too hard.
Kruk is a good ol boy from West Virginia.
I live outside Philly and watch Phillies games when I am not watching the Reds so I have heard Kruk many times. Kruk is enjoyable to listen to and funny. Sadak is annoying.
Time for Brewers to “put up or shut up” in playoffs this year.
1 AL pennant and 0 WS titles since 1970 despite many playoff appearances.
Wow! Didn’t realize that the Brewers were MLB’s version of the Vikings, Bills, Bengals, and many other sports teams that have never won a league title!
Hey Oldtimer.
I agree. I am rooting for them. Yeah I know they are our nemesis in our division but I have great respect for a small market team that gets it. Same with Cleveland. Same with Rays. Reds are like them in one respect. They keep up the same consistent strategy year after year. Only difference is these other teams are winning strategies and Reds are losing strategies year after year after year….
Raisel Iglesias probably could have helped the bullpen a bit the past few years….
Available twice as FA. 2021 and 2025. Signed $10M the first time and $16M the next time. Reds had two chances to sign him.
Watching the Houston Cheaters against that other Chicago team, the White Sox! The White Sox cheated too, way back in 1919!
Can somebody please remind me what time the Reds playoff game is? I can’t seem to find it online.
It’s on ESPN 8, The Ocho.
Classic, Doug! Just classic! Dodge, dip, dive, duck and dodge!
Ha ha!!! Classic
Half of the AL playoff teams had 85 or fewer wins. Just sayin’.
I’m “old school” on playoffs. I think each league should have three division champions and ONE wild card team (best record among remaining 12 teams in that league).
I agree with this. We all know why though. Playoff money is huge for the league. More teams, more games…more money
Braves Phillies series is fascinating to me. Phillies seem to be getting very old very quick. Castellanos contract went sideways very quick and Schwarber hit .197 second half of season and wasnt good and Geno was far better
Braves up 1-0 now and chance to send Phillies home without Zach Wheeler pitching because they squeaked in. Old Friend Tyler Mahle gets the chance to resurrect his career and knock the Phillies out in round 1. Im rooting for Tyler and hoping maybe there might be a chance at a reunion. He was dominant in September for the Braves. Hope he keeps it up.
He suffers from PTSD when e steps on the hill at the GASP. He ain’t coming.
Is that the same Schwarber that Reds fans wanted Krall to mortgage GABP to sign for 4-5 years? Yes, it is a rhetorical question.
I don’t know if this matters but the Reds were:
Vs AL playoff teams: 12-9
2-1 vs Astros
2-1 vs WSox
2-1 vs RSox
2-1 vs Yankees
2-1 vs Rays
2-4 vs Guardians
Vs. NL playoff teams 18-35:
3-3 vs Phillies
3-3 vs Braves
3-3 vs Padres
4-9 vs Cubs
4-9 vs Brewers
1-6 vs Dodgers
Dodgers, Brewers and Cubs were really tough (9-24 against them)…
When you can’t beat teams in your own division, well that might be a good reason why they are sitting home.
I’m not sure who I hope wins it all. Wouldn’t mind seeing the White Sox make a run, and maybe Castillo pitches at some point. Would be nice to see Nick Martinez do well with the Rays. I’d almost strangled root for Milwaukee to win it all.
Think the Dodgers ate going to be too tough to beat eventually. Maybe the Padres are the sleeper.
Cubs…getting beat big tonight. I don’t think they have the pitching you need to beat many of these teams, especially in a longer series. I like their trades for Holmes, Gaussman, but feels like they don’t have an ace or even really a #2 type starter.
Strangely root…lol, I can’t type sometimes
I personally am rooting for the Dodgers to beat the Yankees. As a Reds fan I am rooting for absurdity. That is likely the only way things will change in this big corporate era. Maybe if the Dodgers win the next 10 world series things will finally change.
Just like in the 50s and 60s it was the Yankees and Dodgers year after year. Finally other teams got fed up and created some changes… ie astro turf to create an advantage this led to some pretty exciting years for the reds and baseball in general in the 70s 80s and 90s. Maybe it can happen again.
Just afraid if it is the Guardians and Brewers in the world series… the commissioner office and media will say … hey look the league is fair and everything is OK. When we all know mlb has some serious serious issues.
At this point in our lives, seeing the Dodgers and Yankees disable the entire system just so we can hope for something better in 2032 doesn’t seem like a good use of my time.
Yeah, a Tampa-Milwaukee series would mean “all is well if you are smart,” but in the end, it’s still somebody else getting the victory parade. BTW, where exactly in Tampa-St. P would they hold such a parade?
3 of 4 of playoff day one games turned out well. Saw most of the NYY blowout win but not really interested in either team.
Cam Schittler threw 117 pitches. This late in the season, that seems like a big number. Oh, yeah, NYY can lose the next 3 games with my blessing.
I’d take the Dodgers over the field if I was a betting man.
I’m pulling for the Padres to send the Cubs home and for the Dodgers to somehow not win a 3rd in a row.