By HAL McCOY
It is as clear as the numbers next to his name — something is amiss with Cincinnati Reds pitcher Homer Bailey.
Maybe the Cincinnati Reds should shut him down for the season and permit him to fully recover from his Tommy John surgery. What could it hurt? The Reds are on a spinning treadmill destined for Nowheresville.
It certainly can’t do Bailey any good to keep sending him out to get his brains scrambled.
FOR THE SECOND STRAIGHT game Bailey tried to negotiate his way through the first inning. Negotiations didn’t go well.
It is Bailey’s 10th year with the Reds, but amazingly it was his first start in Chase Field and it is one he quickly will erase from his memory bank.
For the second straight start, Bailey was ripped asunder, this time by the lowly Arizona Diamondbacks, 11-2, the same team that managed no runs and four hits the night before against Anthony DeSclafani.
Bailey pitched only one inning and gave up four runs (three earned) on five singles during a 34-pitch first inning.
That followed his start against the Los Angeles Dodgers during which he pitched 2 1/3 innings and gave up six runs and nine hits in game the Reds lost, 18-7.
TO ADD INSULT TO THE afternoon, the Reds couldn’t solve a struggling Diamondbacks pitcher. Archie Bradley came into the game with a 4-and-8 record and a 5.06 earned run average. In his three previous starts he gave up 11 runs in 15 innings. He had won one game since June 19.
But against the Reds, who had scored 13 on Saturday night, he pitched six innings and gave up two runs and five hits. In his previous 105 innings he had walked 54. He didn’t walk any Sunday.
In one game earlier this season, Bailey pitched six shutout innings against the Miami Marlins and his fastball touched 97 miles an hour. On Sunday his fastball was at 90 and 91.
The first three Diamondbacks singled in the first inning against Bailey — Phil Gosselin, Michael Bourn and A.J. Pollock. The first run scored on a fielder’s choice. The second scored on Wellington Castillo’s ground ball.
It was 2-0 with two outs and Bailey could have escaped further damage. But Jake Lamb singled to make it 3-0 and a fourth run scored on Brandon Drury’s single when catcher Ramon Cabrera dropped Billy Hamilton’s throw.
THE REDS GOT BACK INTO the mix in the second when Brandon Phillips and Scott Schebler hit back-to-back one-out home runs, cutting the deficit to 4-2.
But that was it. No more offense. From the third to the sixth Bradley faced the minimum 12 batters. Adam Duvall singled to lead the fourth and Brandon Phillips hit into his 15th double play this year.
Billy Hamilton singled to open the sixth and appeared to steal second. But a replay/review revealed he overslid the bag and was tagged out.
The Diamondbacks scored two runs in four innings against Josh Smith to push their lead to 6-2 and then Ross Ohlendorf gave up a three-run pinch-hit home run to Yasmany Tomas in the sixth, seventh home run by a pinch-hitter against the Reds this season, to make it 9-2.
JUMBO DIAZ CAME ON IN the eighth and poured kerosense on the fire. The first four Diamondbacks hit safely and two more runs scored for an 11-2 Arizona lead.
While Arizona amassed 18 hits, the Reds collected only five, three in the second inning and they lost the series two games to one.
Joey Votto was called out on strikes on a full count to end the game and was 0 for 4, ending his streak of reaching base in 21 staight games. Eugenio Suarez entered the game with a 12-game streak of reaching base, but struck out all three times.
I don’t like replays because that have to go to New York to check it out, and we have no idea why some plays are reversed. The play on Hamilton showed he should have been called safe. As his hand was still on the base his knee was in contact with the base. We should have the privilege of seeing what New York based it on.
I agree with you Hal. We should shut Bailey down for the year.