Rockies 6, Reds 4 - Cincinnati loses game, loses series, loses, loses, loses

The Joe Nuxhall Memorial Honorary Star of the Game

Todd Frazier launched another homer for the Cincinnati Reds today, and he nearly singlehandedly fueled what offense the good guys were capable of mustering on the afternoon.  Frazier, whose 14th blast now has him on pace to hit 49 on the season, went 2 for 3 with said dinger, a double, a bases loaded walk, and a pair of ribbies, and he continues to be the one offensive force that shows up day in and day out for the Reds.

Honorable Mentions are due to:  Tucker Barnhart, who dingered and threw out yet another would-be base stealer; Manny Parra, Burke Badenhop, and Tony Cingrani, who combined to throw 4 innings of scoreless 1-hit ball from the bullpen; Billy Hamilton, who went 2 for 3 with a steal; and Jay Bruce, who got a rare Reds hit with runners in scoring position (even though it came on a pop-up he didn't really see after hitting it).

Key Plays

• For the third consecutive game, Rockies leadoff beard Charlie Blackmon took a leadoff walk to start the Top of the 1st, and - wouldn't ya know - it haunted.  Not Blackmon particularly, though, since he was nailed trying to steal 3B by the arm of Tuker Barnhart.  Carlos Gonzalez singled up the middle to reach base, and heck, the walk Troy Tulowitzki took a batter later haunted, too, when Nolan Arenado blasted his 10th homer of the season off Mike Leake, a 3-run job that boinked off the facade of the 2nd deck in LF.  Reds trailed, 3-0.
• Fortunately for the Reds, Kyle Kendrick-Marquis was on the mound for Colorado, and he promptly served up a solo blast to Frazier in the Bottom of the 1st, a laser that just cleared the wall in the left-center power alley.  Reds trailed, 3-1.
• Leake's streak of pitching meek continued in the Top of the 2nd, however, as he surrendered a leadoff single to D.J. LeMahieu before leaving a meatball in the zone that Blackmon launched for a 2-run dinger a handful of rows deep into the RF seats.  Reds trailed, 5-1.
• The Rockies tacked on another run off Leake in the Top of the 5th, though this one came courtesy of a bloop instead of a blast.  Diversifying their portfolio, those Rockies.  Carlos Gonzalez singled against the shift with 1-out, and he moved to 2B two batters later when Arenado singled up the middle.  CarGo then motored home on Ben Paulsen's soft liner that fell just between Schumaker and Billy Hamilton in shallow CF, running on contact since there were 2-outs.  Reds trailed, 6-1.
• Kyle Kendrick continued to motor through the woefully stumbling Reds offense, but he finally blinked in the Bottom of the 8th by leaving a meatball up in the zone for Barnhart, who lifted a towering fly ball that just cleared the wall in RF for a solo blast.  Kendrick got an out, but after Hamilton singled and Skip Schumaker walked, the Rockies starter was finally pulled in favor of Boone Logan.  Logan then walked Joey Votto to load the bases, and he walked Frazier to drive in a run.  Haunting, really.  Jay Bruce then lofted a bloop into no-man's land in LF, and it fell just between Troy Tulowitzki and LF Brandon Barnes to drive in Schumaker.  Marlon Byrd and Zack Cozart each lifted lazy, bloopy, rally-destroying short fly balls, though, and that ended the one promising inning this team has seen in the last two weeks.  Reds trailed, 6-4.
• That was the end of the scoring.  The Rockies did more of it on the day.  Reds lose, 6-4.