Joe Nuxhall Memorial Honorary Star of the Game
Jeremy Horst. A lot of players had good games, but many of them also made plays that cost the Reds runs, or failed to come through in heartbreaking ways. So we'll give it to the kid making his debut. He did pitch well, going 2.2 innings, striking out four and walking none. He even had a hit and a go-ahead RBI. He only allowed two hits, but unfortunately one of them was a home run by Brian McCann that let the Braves tie the game. Plus, everyone else had made their Horst puns today, and I wanted in on the action. Honorable mentions go to Jonny Gomes (4-5 with a double and two runs scored) and Drew Stubbs (3 hits, a double, 3 RBI, a run, a stolen base, and a backbreaking GIDP).
Key Plays
- The Reds started promisingly against Derek Lowe. Drew Stubbs singled, and stole second. After Brandon Phillips grounded out, Joey Votto walked, and wild pitch and a walk to Scott Rolen loaded the bases for the hot-hitting Jay Bruce. Unfortunately, Bruce had a really off night and grounded into the inning-ending double play. He would fail again with the bases loaded in the third, and ended up going 0-6.
- With the pitching corps a shambles, the Reds really needed a long outing from their workhorse, Bronson Arroyo. But Arroyo has been a bit of a shambles himself lately. With two outs in the first inning, he walked Chipper Jones and gave up back to back singles to Brian McCann and Eric Hinske. The familiar first inning woes abound. Braves lead, 1-0.
- Things were worse in the second inning. DC Comics sidekick Freddie Freeman led off with a double, and Alex Gonzalez put him on third with a single. Derek Lowe sacrificed Gonzalez over to second, and Jordan Schafer laid down a successful squeeze bunt, reaching first himself. Of course, he was then caught stealing (nice to see Hanigan throwing runners out again!), which is good because Martin Prado singled. Only Gonzalez scored, and that was it for the inning. Braves lead, 3-0.
- The Reds have some of the best catchers in all of baseball, but the Braves have one of the few guys that can trump them. Brian McCann led off the third inning with a home run, and two outs later, Freddie Freeman homered as well. Not the start we needed from Bronson. Braves lead, 5-0.
- The Reds had been getting on base, and finally got all the way around in the fourth inning. Jonny Gomes singled and Edgar Renteria walked. Ryan Hanigan struck out, but pinch hitter Miguel Cairo softly singled to load the bases. This time, instead of Jay Bruce being up, Drew Stubbs was at the plate and hit a bases-clearing double. Brandon Phillips also doubled, scoring Stubbs, and Joey Votto singled to drive in Phillips and chase Derek Lowe from the game. Game tied, 5-5.
- In the fifth inning, Jonny Gomes once again led off with a hit, this time a double. Two outs later, Jeremy Horst, who had come in to pitch for Arroyo in the fourth inning, batted for himself and singled, driving in Gomes. Reds lead, 6-5.
- Horst's adulation was short-lived, however. In the bottom of the inning, he gave up a(nother) home run to Brian McCann. Game tied, 6-6.
- Once again, the Reds offense went to sleep and the game headed into extra innings. Not good for a sorely overused bullpen. Even less good were some of our top hitters grounding into inning-ending double plays in the tenth (Joey Votto) and the twelfth (Drew Stubbs).
- Poor Carlos Fisher was once again the sacrificial lamb. He made it through the eleventh inning, but was sent back out for the twelfth. Sam LeCure and Francisco Cordero were both nominally available. Fisher, whose arm deserves a vacation, couldn't locate the strike zone. He walked Jordan Schafer and Martin Prado, and then Chipper Jones singled, driving in Schafer and ending the game. Braves win, 7-6.
Other Notes
- The Reds have had bad luck with extra inning games, but the Braves have played seven games that went into extras in May, including five of their last ten. That's insane.
- I didn't see the game, but apparently there were some questionable umpiring calls.
- Despite his four hits, Jonny Gomes is still only batting .191.