KSReds: Cincinnati Reds Split Series in St. Louis

After scoring 11 runs on 16 hits on Thursday evening, the Cincinnati Reds were shutout by the St. Louis Cardinals on Friday. Then, after putting up nine runs on 13 hits in a win on Saturday, the Reds were shutout once again on Sunday. 20 runs on 29 hits in two wins, zero runs on six hits in two losses. The level of inconsistently is truly remarkable with this team at the plate.

With Sunday’s loss, the Reds have now failed to win their last six series. Cincinnati was 32-33 on June 8th after a seven game winning streak. Now, they end the month 39-45. With 13 games to play before the All-Star break it feels like do or die time.

The Reds will get Monday off before traveling to New York for three games against the Yankees. Graham Ashcraft will take the ball at Yankee Stadium on Tuesday evening for a 7:05 p.m. Eastern Time first pitch. Andrew Abbott and Frankie Montas are also scheduled to start on the trip. After the three game set with the 54-32 Yankees, the Reds will then get ten games against teams well below .500. The Detroit Tigers (37-46), Colorado Rockies (27-55), and Miami Marlins (30-54) should offer an opportunity to stack up some wins. Getting hot going into the All-Star break is an absolute must at this point. Cincinnati currently sits four and a half games out of a Wild Card spot.

Reds Explode For 16 Hits in Series-Opening Win

It was a great evening at the plate for the Cincinnati Reds. They scored in each of the first five innings, tallied 16 total hits, and cruised to an 11-4 victory. No time was wasted either as the first run was scored just five pitches into the game. Jonathan India singled up the middle to lead off the night in St. Louis and then Elly De La Cruz tripled to make it a 1-0 game. Those two would combine for five hits on the night to lead way alongside Noelvi Marte who made his season debut.

Marte, who was suspended for the first 80 games, went 3-5 with a RBI and three runs scored against the Cardinals. His RBI double in the third inning made it 4-0 and then he would score on a Will Benson sacrifice fly making it 5-0. Nolan Arenado got the Cardinals on the board with a two run home run, but Spencer Steer matched it with a two run shot of his own. Leading 7-2, the Reds had the game on cruise control from that point on to take the series opener.

While everything was working in the batter’s box, Andrew Abbott couldn’t get comfortable on the mound. The left-hander labored through five innings walking six batters. However, thanks to a lot of run support, Abbott earned his seventh win of the season. Buck Farmer and Sam Moll each pitched well in relief as Cincinnati took down the rival Cardinals 11-4.

Pitcher’s Duel Ends in 1-0 Loss

After an offensive explosion in St. Louis on Thursday, the Cincinnati Reds went cold on Friday evening. However, despite getting shutout, the Reds left eight runners on base and went just 1-10 with runners in scoring position. There were opportunities to score, but no execution. Cardinals left fielder Brendan Donovan made two spectacular plays as well to keep the Reds out of the scoring column.

The first of two run-saving plays in left was made by Donovan in the top of the sixth inning. Spencer Steer was hit by a pitch to lead off the inning and then Nick Martini drew a walk. After Nolevi Marte flew to left field, Santiago Espinal turned on one down the line but Donovan was able to run it down and save potentially two runs. Then, with two outs in the ninth, Donovan robbed a Stuart Fairchild home run that would have tied the game.

St. Louis’ lone run came in third inning thanks to a poor defensive decision by the Reds. With one out and runners at the corners Alec Burleson blooped one into shallow center field behind the second base bag. However, instead of letting Stuart Fairchild charge in and have momentum towards home plate, Elly De La Cruz called him off and made the play moving away from the plate. Even with Cruz’ strong arm, Michael Siani was able to tag up and score on the play. That one run proved to be enough as the Cardinals evened the series with the 1-0 win.

Jonathan India Stays Hot as Reds Rough Up Sonny Gray

There is nothing more difficult in all of sports than hitting a baseball. It is absolutely a game of failure. However, sometimes you find yourself in a zone where the baseball looks more like a beach ball. That is what it must feel like for Jonathan India right now. The Cincinnati Reds second baseman is hitting 21-41 (.512) during his current 11-game hitting streak. He also has doubled in seven consecutive games after collecting two of them on Saturday. Most importantly though, the Reds were back in the scoring column with nine runs on 13 hits to defeat the St. Louis Cardinals 9-4.

India got the party started with a RBI double in the third and then scored as Elly De La Cruz came behind him with a RBI double of his own. Cincinnati then blew it open in the fifth inning putting up six runs to make it an 8-1 game. The Reds bullpen labored a bit, but ultimately there was more than enough cushion to survive. Brent Suter pitched a clean ninth inning to nail down the 9-4 victory.

Carson Spiers earned the win allowing just one earned run on three hits in six innings of work. He has now pitched at least six innings in three consecutive starts. The 26-year old is 2-1 with a 3.13 ERA and has done an excellent job filling into the starting rotation. As for former Cincinnati Reds All-Star Sonny Gray, he allowed a season high six runs, three earned, in just four and one-third innings. He is still 9-5 on the season with a dazzling 2.98 earned run average.

Offense Goes Cold Once Again

The level of inconsistency with this Cincinnati Reds offense is truly staggering. On Thursday night they put up 11 runs on 16 hits only to be shutout the following game. Then, after scoring nine runs on 13 hits on Saturday, the Reds were shutout once against on Sunday while collecting just two hits. You can’t win when you don’t score and Sunday marked the seventh shutout of the season. There have been 19 times this season when the Reds have failed to score more than one run. The offense simply isn’t good enough for this to be a playoff baseball team.

Obviously the lack of offense was the storyline, but Hunter Greene’s performance left a lot to be desired as well. After finding a groove in May and early June, it appears that the 24-year has reverted to old habits. Sunday marked his second straight start of not making it through five innings. He didn’t necessarily pitch poorly, but the inefficiency continues to be a major issue for Greene. It took him 95 pitches to record 14 outs while allowing just one run on four hits. Cincinnati is going to need more out of him going forward.

St. Louis got on the board in the fifth inning as Alec Burleson doubled to score Pedro Pages and break the scoreless tie. Masyn Winn added a RBI double of his own in the sixth to set the eventual final score of 2-0. Jonathan India, who extended his hitting streak to 12 games, and Stuart Fairchild produced the only two hits for the Cincinnati Reds on Sunday.