Runnin' with the Reds (4/11)
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by user Kevinsecaur
I figured I'd keep a running diary of a Reds game every couple weeks for a few different reasons...
1. First of all, it'll be interesting to track my feelings on the team as the season progresses. For instance, I've gone from starting the season a bit pessimistic (predicting 88 losses) to the joy and optimism provided by an Opening Day beatdown of the Cubs back to pessimism after losing three straight games. So I'll keep you posted on my point of view, although I fear it will only go from pessimistic to apathetic.
2. Along with my feelings on the direction of the Reds, I'll track my predictions for the season (found here: http://secauronsports.blogspot.com/2007/04/reds-update.html) and we'll see how I do.
3. This allows me to at least put up the front of caring about baseball. In reality, I don't care about nor will I follow any team but Cincinnati from now until September. Then I'll post about the MLB postseason as though I've been following all along and am some sort of expert. In all honesty, I find baseball (both watching live games and trying to follow the sport throughout a six-month, 162-game season) incredibly tedious. Outside of the Reds and a minor following of the other teams in the NL Central, my MLB knowledge is severely limited.
Side note: I might know a little more about the league if only the media didn't devote 99.6% of its MLB coverage to Barry Bonds, Dice-K and the Yankees. Also, I don't consider baseball one of the "Big Three" sports in America anymore. Instead, I think of football (both pro and college) and college basketball as the "Big Two."
4. It'll give me the opportunity to make fun of George Grande's high-pitched squeals and Chris Welsh's mustache. I'll also try to answer the age-old question: Is Thom Brennaman really a blow-hard toolbag whom I like only because he is the son of Marty Brennaman, or is he actually a good play-by-play guy? (Two weeks ago, I would have sided emphatically with the latter. Now, after criticism from my guy Bill Simmons and from a Secaur on Sports reader out in Arizona and after listening to him sporadically on the Reds' radio broadcasts, I'm not so sure.)
With all of this in mind, I stocked the fridge with Mountain Dew, busted out some leftover Easter candy, leaned back in my recliner and kept a running diary of Wednesday's Reds-Diamondbacks game as seen on FSN Ohio. Here's what went down:
9:32 – Chris Welsh’s mustache makes its first appearance. You know the goatee that was popular in the late ‘90s? I had that; only problem is that it was 2006. I also rocked a sweet chin strap beard (like this only cleaner) in college. My point is this: if a guy who’s sported these two looks is making fun of your facial hair, you know it’s pretty bad.
He’s joined by Thom Brennaman, in for Grande this evening. Looks like we’ll get to ponder the good announcer vs. blowhard debate sooner than I’d planned.
9:40 – Matt Belisle (1-0, 1.50 ERA) is on the mound for the Reds tonight, and Micah Owings (1-0, 0.00 ERA) goes for the D-Backs. Gotta love the second week of the season if only because Matt Belisle can be undefeated with a 1.50 ERA pitching against a guy who has never given up a run in the majors. (Owings has only pitched in one game before tonight, going five shutout innings in his ML debut.)
Cincinnati’s line-up tonight: CF Freel, 1B Hatteberg, LF Dunn, 3B Encarnacion, RF Hamilton, 2B Phillips, SS Gonzalez, C Ross. I’m pretty jacked to see Hamilton starting, especially after he homered last night to get his first major league hit.
9:45 – After Freel draws a leadoff walk, Dunn singles putting runners on the corners with one out.
9:51 – Encarnacion pops out to the second baseman for the second out as Brennaman lays into Edwin for not running to first on the pop-up. Hamilton strikes out looking on a nasty 3-2 pitch on the inside corner to end the inning. Meanwhile, Thom is still ripping Encarnacion for not hustling to first on the previous play.
The Reds are the kind of team that needs literally everything to go right for them this season if they want to contend. I’m talking everything – the three through five starters have to pitch well, the bullpen has to come up huge, the whole team has to stay healthy – and they’ll still need some luck to stay in the hunt. That said, you gotta do the little things that Cincinnati never seems to do. Defense, smart base running, move the runners over, and – for Cripe’s sake – when you get a man on third with less than two outs, you have to drive him in!
9:55 – After Stephen Drew takes a leadoff walk for the D-Backs, Thom and Chris revisit Encarnacion’s running (or lack of) to first base. The replay shows that Edwin never saw the ball after he hit it and thought he had fouled it straight back. Score one for the “Thom’s an uptight blowhard” camp.
9:58 – Alberto Callaspo doubles to left, and Orlando Hudson follows with a sac fly to score Drew. Speaking of driving in a runner on third with less than two out…
10:02 – Freel makes a heckuva catch as he’s retreating in deep center to save a second run. Belisle gets out of the jam with only minimal damage, but the D-Backs are absolutely tattooing him thus far. 1-0 Arizona after one.
10:10 – Juan Castro enters the game in the bottom of the second replacing Encarnacion. We’re told Edwin is not injured and that benching him is “the manager’s decision.” Brennaman is delighted because he’s vindicated for pissing and moaning about Edwin not hustling to first base. Welsh calls this “a good sign.” Really, Chris? A second year player getting benched for not running out a pop-up is a good sign? You sure you don’t wanna rephrase that?
I have two problems with this decision. First, wouldn’t Narron and Encarnacion have a conversation about this before anyone needs to get pulled from the game? Couldn’t Edwin have just said, “I never saw the ball, I thought I fouled it back. I’m sorry, Skip, it won’t happen again,” and that would just be the end of it? Two, now you’ve got Juan Castro batting clean-up. How many thousands of dollars would you bet that Dunn gets at least one intentional walk later in this game? Not sure “Golden Hands” provides the same kind of protection in the line-up that Edwin did.
10:21 – After getting out of some mild trouble in the first, Owings is absolutely cruising. He’s retired eight straight and nine of 11 Reds’ hitters and hasn’t even given up a hard-hit ball yet. This smells like trouble for the Red Legs.
10:33 – Dunn singles to lead off the fourth and, right on cue, Castro grounds into a DP. Yep, bench the kid for an honest mistake and send a message. Jerry Narron manages poorly enough to make me look smart. Now that’s saying something.
10:39 – The camera cuts to a shot of Billy Hatcher in the Reds’ dugout, who is chewing gum and proceeds to blow a bubble the size of his face. I kid you not.
Back in the booth, Brennaman is giving a geography lesson on the state of Arizona. He first informs us that most of the Grand Canyon runs through Arizona. (I thought that was pretty much common knowledge.) Then Thom continues to talk about the cities of Flagstaff and Sedona. It’s the only the bottom of the fourth, so I’m pretty sure we have time to discuss every city in the entire state by game’s end. Tell us about Scottsdale next, Professor Brennaman.
10:50 – Phillips leads off the fifth with a double, and Gonzalez flies out deep enough to right to move the runner over. Runner on third with less than two outs and … Ross strikes out and looks silly doing so. What an embarrassing at bat in a key situation. Belisle Ks to end the inning. Still 1-0 D-Backs.
11:08 – Freel singles and moves to second on a Hatteberg groundout. More importantly, two guests join the running diary briefly via instant messenger. I ask Scott what he thinks about the game so far, and he responds only by giving me some funny YouTube videos to check out. Turkey also checks in with a “Ross is sucking huge dick.” Okay then.
Dunn and Castro are retired, and the Reds waste yet another leadoff base runner.
11:19 – Hamilton rips a leadoff double down the right field line. I love pulling for this kid. That’s the fourth straight leadoff runner to reach base and the fifth in seven innings for the Reds, yet Cincy is still scoreless.
11:23 – With one out, Gonzalez singles softly to left, but the LF was playing shallow. Hamilton has to stop at third, so they are two on and one out. Man on third with less than two away, here we go again… Hey! A pinch hitter! Ross has looked terrible all year and is 1-for-17 on the season. I guess even Jerry Narron can’t screw this one up.
11:25 – Javier Valentin rips a pinch-hit double into the right field corner. Hamilton and Gonzalez both score, and it’s 2-1 Reds. Narron looks like a genius for pinch hitting Valentin there but, to reiterate, this was an incredibly easy decision. A Little League manager would have known not to hit Ross in that spot.
Micah Owings is done for the night with a final line of 6.1 innings, 2 ER, 7 hits, 5 Ks and a walk. He stands to get the loss as of right now, but I was pretty impressed with the rook.
11:29 – Ken Griffey Jr. pinch hits for Belisle and hits a long fly ball to the warning track in right-center. Valentin went halfway to third and then retreated when the ball was caught. Now, Javier will never, ever be described as fleet of foot. However, Junior just made a 400-foot out. Valentin could have walked from second to third if he had tagged up.
11:35 – Freel nubs one toward third and, of course, it’s an infield hit. Valentin would have scored if he had tagged and advanced on Junior’s fly out. I’m telling you the little things absolutely kill this team. You’ve got to do the little things if you want to win consistently.
Brennaman and Welsh fail to mention it whatsoever, but it should be 3-1 right now. Hatteberg flies out to end the inning, it’s 2-1 Cincinnati and it’s time for me to stretch.
11:39 – Todd Coffey is in to pitch now. Belisle has had back-to-back STELLAR outings for the Reds and could go to 2-0. His final line tonight: 6 innings, 1 ER, 3 hits, 3Ks and a walk.
11:49 – Coffey never makes it look easy, but he gets out of the inning unscathed. Still 2-1 Reds heading to the eighth.
11:53 – Hamilton up again and there’s a drive. Deep to left field and that ball is … GONE! Two home runs in two starts! You gotta be kidding me, and it’s 3-1 Cincinnati. Have I mentioned I love rooting for this kid?
11:56 – After drawing a walk, Phillips tries to steal second and is called out? The catcher’s throw was high and the tag came approximately six seconds after Phillips got to the bag, but apparently he’s out. Good call, blue.
Turkey (via text message this time) chimes in with, “He must be coked up,” in reference to Hamilton’s HR. Classy, Turkey, very classy.
12:03 – Mike Stanton pitches a perfect eighth and, in spite of playing rather poorly for the first six innings, the Reds are just three outs away from picking up a W.
12:19 – With Eric Byrnes on second, David Weathers gives up his second hit of the ninth inning. Chad Tracy’s double down the right field line scores Byrnes, the D-Backs cut the lead in half and the game-tying run is in scoring position.
12:23 – Weathers gets Connor Jackson to ground out to short, and this one belongs to the Reds! It wasn’t easy but then again, it almost never is. Josh Hamilton and Matt Belisle are your co-heroes in this one. Cincinnati 3 – Arizona 2 is your final, and I’m going to bed.
