Bullpen Blows Lead, Reds Lose 4-2

The Joe Nuxhall Memorial Honorary Star of the Game

Tyler Mahle: 6 IP, 1 H, 0 ER, 2 BB, 6 K

Man, what a waste. Mahle pitched a freaking gem and had the Reds at a 2-0 lead before the bullpen took over. With every game mattering so much you have to use your best arms when it matters with a lead. Instead, we got Pedro Strop and Nate Jones. I get it, you lose some games, and the Reds only had a two run lead. However, to lose it with the pitchers you used is pretty damn dumb. I’m not often disappointed with David Bell but tonight I am.

Honorable Mentions are due to: Nick Castellanos who dingered again. Eugenio Suarez who also dingered for the first time. Joey Votto who singled and walked, and Nick Senzel who did the very same thing. I don’t want to give the bullpen any dap, but Cody Reed did pitch a scoreless inning with a strikeout.

Key Plays

• In the Bottom of the 1st Shane Bieber, who is really really good, gave up a freaking dinger to Nick Castellanos. Both are pretty good I guess. At the start of the inning I was real worried about scoring runs. Bieber has struck out 27 batters to 1 walk before tonight’s game. Welp, Nick, really beat the snot out of that one though. Reds lead, 1-0.
• In the bottom of the third Shane Bieber surrendered his second walk of the season. To whom, you may ask? It was Joseph Daniel Votto. Of course. Nothing else happened.
• In the Top of the 4th, Eugenio Suarez dotted up a dinger on Bieber. He crushed it to centerfield. It was Suarez’s first of the year. Senzel also walked, Bieber is obviously losing it, but he was then picked off trying to steal. Reds lead, 2-0.
• I didn’t bring up at all that Mahle was spinning a gem. Six inning of shutout, one hit baseball. The sixth would end up being his last inning as he was approaching 100 pitches. Reds lead, 2-0.
• Pedro Strop got into a bit of trouble in the top of the 6th when an error was committed by Galvis and then a walk. Strop would then get a strikeout, a fly out, and was primed to end the inning until he gave up a walk. Strop got a grounder but it was hit slowly between Votto and Strop in no man’s land. Votto tried to make one hell of a play but Cesar Hernandez would have beat it out anyway. Strop was then replaced by Lucas Sims who walked Reyes to bring in another run. Sims then retired the next batter on a ground out to first. The game was then tied, 2-2.
• Nate Jones walked a guy and then gave up a dinger to Franmil Reyes. Jones got an out and then David Bell brought in Amir Garrett. You are as freaking perplexed as I am. Garrett immediately ended the inning. Cleveland leads, 4-2.
• There was a little something going in the bottom of the 8th when Joey Votto his a single with two outs. That chased Bieber from the game for some other guy. Castellanos went down quickly 0-2, battled back, and then struck out looking. Cleveland leads, 4-2.
• Nothing good happened in the bottom of the 9th. Cleveland wins, 4-2.

Tony Graphanino

Other Notes

• Charlie Scrabbles thinks that Tyler Mahle has a tiny mouth.
• Before tonight’s game Joey Votto had seen 131 pitches. He’s missed two of them. His one strike out was looking. He’s still only struck out once.
• This bullpen, man, it’s bad.
• Tunes