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The Joe Nuxhall Memorial Honorary Star of the Game
Mike Leake struck out 8 batters during his 6 innings on the mound, allowing just a pair of runs while scattering 7 hits. Had a Tony Cruz single been correctly scored as an error on 3B Todd Frazier, he'd have allowed just a single earned run, but I suppose the real story about this game is that I'm attempting to make that sound like a relevant bit of information.
Sigh.
Props to you, Mike, for tossing another gem, though. It's unfortunate you once again got no support in your JNMHSotG effort.
Honorable Mentions are due to: Zack Cozart, who smacked a pair of singles and has an OPS north of .850 over his last 10 games; and Ryan Ludwick, who doinked a pair of singles as part of his "my .362 slugging percentage is again the best among Reds outfielders" campaign.
Key Plays
- The St. Louis Cardinals did their first bit of Cardinaling in the Top of the 3rd. Said "single" by Cruz led things off, and a sac bunt and a gritty single from Kolten Wong scored him. Reds trailed, 1-0.
- Cruz again was to blame for the second Cardinal run, this time thanks to smacking a 2-out single to CF in the Top of the 6th that drove in Matt Adams, who had singled and moved to second on a walk. Reds trailed, 2-0.
- Leake was pulled after just 93 pitches, and when Manny Parra was brought on to pitch the Top of the 7th, the Reds channeled their inner Chicago Cubs just to further squash any semblance of hope out of the souls of their most faithful fans. A throwing error by Devin Mesoraco on a dribbler hit 10 feet, a missed tag, a dropped ball in a rundown, a groan, a grumble, and a change of the channel later, the Cardinals had scored another two runs. Adam Wainwright continued dealing like he was born on a Bellagio table, and the Reds swung often and with whimpers until the game mercilessly came to a close. Reds lose, 4-0.
Source: FanGraphs
- Billy Hamilton is now 0 for 7 with 7 Ks against Adam Wainwright in his career. Wainwright's 12 Ks tonight tied his career high.
- Of the last 27 games in which the Cincinnati Reds have played on national television, they've lost 156 of them.
- It's May 25th, and Jay Bruce is hitting .202 and slugging .342.
- The Reds will hop on a flight after this one, fly across the country, and begin a 3 game series against the Los Angeles Dodgers tomorrow evening. They'll face Hyun-Jin Ryu, Zack Greinke, and Clayton Kershaw in those three games. Thanks, ESPN.
- Tunes.