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They say that with every cloud comes a silver lining. In today’s loss to the Dodgers, those silver linings were quite evident. As storm clouds rolled into Cincinnati, things were Sonny in Los Angeles. If you watched today’s game, you saw great starting pitching. Reds All-Star Sonny Gray dueled future Hall of Famer, Clayton Kershaw, resulting in a very fast-paced and low scoring game-at least until the 8th inning. Every loss is disappointing, but there are several things that Reds fans can be encouraged by, particularly the return to form for Sonny Gray.
Offense
The Reds offense struggled against Dodgers pitching. 3 time Cy Young winner and future Hall of Famer (and apparently the great nephew of the guy that discovered Pluto. Is Pluto a planet still? It’s hard to keep up with these days) Clayton Kershaw kept the bats at bay for 7 innings. By the way, someone needs to tell Kershaw that it’s time for a new hat. Let’s retire old faithful there buddy.
The Redlegs had a good opportunity to score during the third inning. Although starting with two outs in a row from a swinging strikeout and groundout from Tyler Stephenson and Kyle Farmer respectively, Sonny Gray was able to reach base via a walk-which was Kershaw’s first walk of a pitcher since June 2017. Nick Senzel followed this up with a single over short. With two runners on, Winker grounded out to end the inning.
Very little occurred over the next several innings. Votto was able to reach on an opposite field single during the 4th, but no one was able to get on base base until Senzel reached on a weak infield single in the 6th.
Cincinnati’s next chance to score came during the 8th inning. Blake Treinen entered the game to relieve Kershaw. After a swinging strikeout from Tucker Barnhart, Tyler Naquin was able to reach first base on a hit by pitch. Nick Senzel then followed this up with a hard single down the right field line, advancing Naquin to third. In situations with only one out and runners on the corners, typically at least one run is able to score. In fact, run expectancy for this exact situation is 1.140. The Reds were unable to achieve this, however, with Treinen striking out both Winker and Castellanos to end the inning.
The bats went quietly in the 9th as well. Votto grounded out to start the inning, and Suarez struck out going 0-4 on the night. Mike Moustakas was able to reach first base on an opposite field check swing single. Tyler Stephenson reached on a 106 MPH line drive off Garrett Cleavinger’s shoulder. Alex Blandino then struck out to end the game.
One of the encouraging takeaways for Reds fans is how well Senzel played. While benefiting from some good luck, Senzel got four consecutive singles and even stole a base.
Pitching
Being sidelined by back spasms early in the season and then rushed back to the mound, Sonny Gray has been put in some difficult positions. In spite of taking the loss in today’s game, he was able to put many fan concerns to rest by showing a dominant performance against the defending World Series champions. Over 5.2 innings, Sonny gave up only four hits and two earned runs. He walked three, but struck out eleven. Another encouraging note was Gray’s fastball velocity. Hovering around 94-95, and pounding the outside corners, Sonny was in vintage form.
Ryan Hendrix relieved Gray in the 6th. While he did not give up any runs, he struggled to find the strike zone. He walked AJ Pollock on four straight pitches. After struggling to throw strikes to Luke Raley, he was able to induce a groundout to Moustakas. Votto actually made a great diving catch on the play to get the out.
Amir Garrett came in during the 7th inning. His performance, while not as dominating as he has been in the past, was a step forward. He did a good job keeping the ball in the strike zone, not walking a single hitter. Two flyouts and a groundout later, the inning was over.
Sal Romano stepped up on the mound in the 8th inning and did not pitch well. He walked Justin Turner to start the inning and almost gave up a home run to Max Muncy. Chris Taylor tripled to right field, scoring Justin Turner. AJ Pollock then singled on a first pitch swing, bringing Taylor home and the score to 4-0. Romano then intentionally walked Raley to face Barnes, who he also walked to load the bases. Matt Beaty singled to left field, scoring two more runs. Mookie Betts followed this up with a 2 RBI single, bringing the score to 8-0. Romano then walked Gavin Lux and was removed from the game.
Alex Blandino relieved Sal Romano in the 8th with two runners on base. He induced a flyout from Justin Turner to end the inning.
Stats
Hardest Hit Balls
- 106.9 MPH lineout: Mike Moustakas
- 105.7 MPH single: Tyler Stephenson
- 103.2 MPH Single: Nick Senzel
Unluckiest Out of the Day
- Mike Moustkas: .850 xBA lineout
Highest Pitch Velocity by Pitcher
- Ryan Hendrix: 97.4 MPH
- Sal Romano: 95.6 MPH
- Sonny Gray: 94.9 MPH
- Amir Garrett: 94.4 MPH
- Alex Blandino: 86.5 MPH
Highest Pitch Spins
- Sonny Gray: 3055 RPM Curveball
- Sonny Gray: 2993 RPM Slider
Most Pitch Movement
- Sonny Gray: 62 inches vertical drop: Curveball
- Sal Romano: 23 inches horizontal: Sinker
Team Expected Batting Averages
- Reds: .196
- Dodgers: .266
What’s Next?
The Los Angeles Dodgers are an excellent team. It was mentioned on the broadcast that this was the first time they’d lost three games in a row since 2019. Geez. What is that even like? I’m just glad we took the series as a whole.
After an off day tomorrow, the Reds return to Cincinnati to face division rivals, the Chicago Cubs. Game time is 7:10 EST with Wade Miley set to pitch for the Reds against Jake Arrieta of the Cubs.
Photo by Larry Radloff/Icon Sportswire
I know it is very early and the sample sizes very small, but to put into perspective how badly Suarez is slumping, his OPS is 27 points below that of Billy Hamilton.