Reds blanked by Red Sox 5-0

Joe Nuxhall Honorary Memorial Star of the Game

This was an example of a game in which the Reds faced a very good team that put a very good pitcher on the mound who had very good stuff and very good command throughout the evening. For that, the threshold for relative success is lowered significantly, and that’s why Joey Votto gets this evening’s JNHMSotG trophy. Votto was the only Reds hitter to reach base twice in tonight’s game, reaching on a single and a walk. It’s a fairly mundane game by Votto’s standards, which yet again shows how even when the Reds are overmatched on the offensive side of things, Votto can find a way to get on base half of the time. Votto is good.

Honorable mentions go to Robert Stephenson, who threw a decent six innings in which he allowed four runs, two earned, on five hits and two walks while striking out four, and Luke Farrell, who pitched a scoreless ninth inning against his dad’s team, which is pretty rad.

Key Plays

• Xander Bogaerts doubled to lead this game off, then reached third on a passed ball by Tucker Barnhart. A batter later, Bogaerts scored on a sacrifice fly by Brock Holt, which pushed the Red Sox ahead 1-0.
• Stephenson cruised for a few innings after that, but made a critical error leading off the sixth inning that allowed Holt to reach first. Cincinnati birthchild Andrew Benintendi then walked, which placed a pair of runners aboard for Mitch Moreland to send home with a 3-run homer that made it a 4-0 game in favor of Boston.
• Benintendi played run-driver-inner in the very next inning, when Cincinnati brought on Amir Garrett to pitch the seventh. Garrett got the first two batters of the frame out, but walked the next two before allowing an RBI single to Benintendi that gave the game its final score 5-0.
• See how none of these highlights included a Reds hitter? That’s because they tallied just three hits in this one. Yuck. Reds lose 5-0.

Tony Graphanino

Other Notes

• Farrell was the first player to face the team his father was managing since 2004 today, which was pretty cool.
• Joey Votto made his first error in 53 games tonight, which was less cool.
• Jackson Stephens is scheduled to face Doug Fister on Sunday, with game time set for 1:10p.m. EST.
• Tunes.